Kairai smiled contentedly as she ran through the empty meadow in the Makai. She liked meadows. It was easy to see an attack coming. She kept running until she saw a mountain in the distance. She headed straight for it. As she got closer she discovered it was surrounded by woods. And she was in them.
She heard voices and jumped in a tree, but it was too late. Whoever it was spotted her. His buddies, too.
"It's the tantei!"
"Filthy little she-devil!"
"Get her!"
She frowned and jumped down to find she was surrounded. "Darn..."
"Nowhere to run, little girl..."
Kairai glanced around for an escape, but found none. She reached for her dagger...
And then someone jumped in front of her.
"Touch her and you'll have me to deal with."
Kairai's entire body froze instantly.
It's him!
She watched as he quickly destroyed all the lower-class demons. His speed was amazing!
The katana flashed red, stained with blood.
Hiei turned to her when they were all dead. "You hurt, onna?"
"No." she murmured, staring up at him incredulously.
"Hn. I see you remember me."
Kairai nodded silently.
"Well there's more where those things came from. I've been hiding in the mountain to try and find out where they're coming from."
Kairai blinked. "Why are you telling me this?"
"Well if you try to go anywhere by yourself you could be attacked again. Do you want that?"
Kairai got excited, but hid this effectively. "What should I do then?"
Hiei hesitated for a moment. "I'm staying in a cave near the top of the mountain. It seems there's no other option."
Kairai allowed herself to smile. "Thank you."
"Ch."
End Chapter Eleven
A/N: Ah, sorry this took so long. My computer crashed THREE times and then I lost the Notebook... Anyway, here's the long-desired update... Chapter Twelve.
Friends
Kairai shivered. What an awkward situation. This man- she had yet to learn his name- was a fire youkai. He wasn't cold. She was freezing. She wrapped her arms around herself and leaned back against the wall of the dank cave, trying to make her trembling less noticeable.
Hiei blinked. The girl was shaking. Being a fire youkai, he had never known cold. But after meeting more people, he had discovered that when they were cold, they shook. Kairai was shaking a lot, so he took it she was very cold.
He thought for a moment, then stood. He walked over to her, taking off his cloak. When he got to her he draped it over the front of her body then sat down, a safe distance from the girl.
Kairai blushed at this simple gesture of kindness. The cloak was comfortingly warm and she pulled it close around herself. She barely hid her smile when the mysterious man sat beside her. She looked at the ground and broke the silence hesitantly. "Thanks..."
Hiei nodded and remained quiet.
Kairai sighed in slight dissapointment. She would have to be the one to strike up conversation. "What is-"
"My name?" he interrupted.
She nodded. "I'm Kairai."
"Hiei."
Kairai looked over at him, absorbing his appearance. He had hair the darkest ebony and fiery red eyes. There was also a cute white thatch in his dark hair. She decided he was attractive. Cute... in a cold, slightly frightening way.
Hiei sensed Kairai watching him. When she looked away, he stole a glance at her. Long brown tresses fell gracefully about her face and shoulders down to her waist. She had crystal blue eyes that seemed to sparkle with the slightest movement. Her lips were open slightly and chapped pink from the cold. After observing this, he looked at the ground. Something about her made him feel uncomfortable... yet completely at ease.
After a moment of silence, Kairai said slowly, "So... have you been staying in this cave long?"
Hiei thought for a moment. "Not too long."
Kairai looked over at him. "You don't talk much, huh?"
Hiei raised an eyebrow.
Kairai blushed. "Oh, sorry. That was rude of me. I..."
"You what...?"
"Are you a good listener?"
Hiei nodded, closing his eyes and leaning back on the wall.
"I've been cursed to speak my thoughts."
"Oh?"
Kairai nodded. "It was because of my half-sister's jealousy. She's always hated me because she thinks I'm prettier than her... But I don't think so. She's very pretty."
Hiei sighed. "Women."
"She also... she killed my mother in her jealousy."
Hiei's eyes shot open in a flash of memory. "Your mother?"
Kairai gave a sad chuckle. "Yeah. When I was about sixteen. It was a long time ago... and my sister erased my memory of Mother. The only way I even know I had a mother was she told me. Kozue, my half-sister, told me that she murdered Mother."
Hiei was silent for a moment. "I'm sorry..."
Kairai sniffled in spite of her smile and brushed a few tears away. "It's no big deal. It happened a long time ago. Since I found out, I've been a loner... I would torture myself for no reason. I still have the scars... Then I met Koenma. He saved me from my bitterness."
"So are you in love with him or something?"
Kairai smiled. "I used to be... Until I met someone else."
"And who is that?"
She looked up at him, her smile shining through the tear stains on her cheeks. "Maybe I'll tell you one day."
Hiei found his cheeks to be very warm all of a sudden. He covered this with a short "hn," and looked away.
"You are a good listener. Would you be... my friend?" she asked timidly.
Hiei blinked down at her in slight surprise. This girl... she wants to be my friend?
One of the corners of his mouth twitched dangerously. "Alright... friends." he said quietly. He leaned his head back against the cave wall as he watched his new friend close her eyes and fall asleep. His cheeks warmed over again when her head tilted over onto his shoulder. His mouth twitched again, so unused to forming a pleased smile. He compromised by leaning his head against hers softly, and fell asleep.
End Chapter Twelve