CHAPTER 3

Pestering

When Minoly got home she found a note written by her mother saying she was going out for awhile and wouldn't be back in time to start supper. It also asked Minoly to 'please put the roast in the oven for her'.

The girl peeked into the kitchen. She spotted the makings for meat loaf spread out on the counter. Quickly she slapped it together and shoved it into the oven, not really bothering to set the timer or turn it up to the right temperature.

When she was done with that she trooped into the livingroom. So my second impression wasn't as good as my first, she thought, sitting down on the sofa. I'll just have to try again. Then she laughed. "I think I'm turning into a stalker," she said out loud. "I can't just go around following him where ever he goes! That's just stupid! I'd better come up with a better way. Maybe I should try the direct approach. Next time I see him I won't act so weird. I'll try to act normal."

She sighed and leaned back on the sofa. "Later... I'm tired..."

It wasn't long before she dozed off.

Awhile later the girl was awakened by someone yelling. "Ohmigod! Minoly, what did I tell you about dinner! Why don't you even listen? Damn! Look at it!"

Minoly smelled smoke and burning beef. Oh no! I did it again!

She got up and ran into the kitchen. "I'm so sorry!" she yelled. "You know I don't know how to cook!"

"That's no excuse for not even trying!"

"I did try."

"No, you didn't. The tempature is set for five hundred degrees!"

"Oop..." Maybe I should have at least attempted to get it right...

Later the next afternoon Hiei left Kurama's house and went for a walk.

As he did he didn't really think about anything. His thoughts just jumbled together. One of his thoughts was about the annoying girl who wouldn't leave him alone. But he didn't dwell on it... or so he told himself.

I don't understand her, he thought now. Why is she so desperate to get to know me? I bet she's a demon who is trying to get to know me so she can kill me...

He was so into his thought accusations that for a few blocks he wasn't aware he was being followed. Then just as he started to get angry at his own thoughts he heard what sounded like a yelp behind him.

He stopped in his tracks to listen. Nothing. Maybe I imagined... Someone sneezed.

Hiei instantly turned around, his hand on his sword. Then he saw who it was and... Not again! he thought. Why can't she leave me alone?

Minoly.

The girl looked at at him and grinned. "Hello," she said, waving.

"What do you want?" he demanded.

"I was just..."

"What?"

"Nevermind."

"Hmmm..." He turned around and started walking again. He sensed her start to follow. "Stop following me," he ordered, looking over his shoulder at her.

"I'm not," she said.

"Yes, you are!" he yelled. "Now go away!"

"Fine!"

Satisfied by her answer, he once again turned his head in the direction he was going. After a few minutes he could sense her once again.

I got to get rid of her! He growled and started running.

Minoly, stunned, watched him go for a minute then ran after him, her face full of determination.

Farther down the street Yusuke, Kurama, Kuwabara, and a blue haired girl named Botan were all standing on the sidewalk talking and laughing.

Kuwabara was halfway through a story about beating some kid up when Kurama exclaimed, interupting the other boy. "What is that?"

"What?" Botan asked, kinda glad for the interuption.

The fox demon pointed down the street. "That," he said.

Everyone turned their heads in the direction his finger indicated. They saw a cloud of dust coming toward them.

"Since when does Tokyo get sandstorms?" Yusuke asked.

Botan bopped him on the head. "That's not a sandstorm. Someone's coming toward us!"

Sure enough, as the cloud got closer, they saw a person at the head of it. They were all surprised to see who it was.

"Hiei?" Kurama said confused.

"Why is he running so fast?" Kuwabara asked.

"We'll find out soon," Botan said logically.

Without even noticing his friends as he went, Hiei ran by in a cloud of dust. Everyone was coughing so hard they almost missed the one who was chasing him.

It was a girl!
"Hey!" Yusuke said as he watched her go by. "Isn't that that Minoly girl from school?"

"It looked like it," Kurama said.

"Why's she chasing Hiei anyway?" Kuwabara grunted, glaring after the girl. "What does she see in that little shrimp?"

"What's wrong, Kuwabara?" Yusuke asked, grinning and poking the taller boy's head. "You jealous?"

"No! Yes!" Kuwabara stammered. He punched Yuskue to the ground. "Who asked you anyway?" he demanded, a red anger mark on his head.

Botan blinked cluelessly. "Who's Minoly?"

"Nobody," Kuwabara said. "Only one of the cutest girls in school."

"Who Kuwabara is in love with," Yusuke snorted.

"I am not!"

"Yes, you are!"

"How can you tell?"

"Your face is turning red."

Botan sighed and turned away from them. "Boys," she muttered.

She noticed Kurama wasn't even paying attention. He was staring off into space, a serious expression on his face.

"Kurama?" the blue haired girl said, getting his attention. "Is something wrong?"

"Nothing too important," he replied, looking at her. "I was just thinking about Hiei."

"What about him?"

"Well," the red head began. "He's never had a girl crazy about him before... I'm afraid he won't know how to handle it and... might do something... Something he'll regret..."

Botan stared at him a moment then turned her head in the direction Hiei and the girl had gone. "I sure hope not.."

"Leave me alone! Leave me alone! Leave me alone!" Hiei yelled, as he ran through the city. "Go bother someone else!"

Minoly did not let up. She continued to chase him even after she got a side sticker. She was determind to follow him until he talked to her. Even if I have to chase him till he falls over from exaustion, she thought, panting heavily. Or until I do..

Hoping to shake her, the fire/ice deman ran into an alley. Minoly wasn't far behind. He kept this up but couldn't rid himself of her. For a human she sure had a good sense of tracking...

He might have been sucessful eventually if the last alley he went into hadn't turned out to be a dead end. He stopped just inches from the wall at the end and stared up at it, panting. As he stood there catching his breath and deciding what to do next, Minoly came up behind him.

"Ah hah!" she exclaimed, stopping a few feet behind him and leaning over to catch her breath. "I finally caught up with you!"

He turned around and glared at her. "What do you want?" he demanded.

She panted a moment then looked up. "I just wanted to see where you were going," she said.

Hiei fell over. "Where I was going?" he exclaimed. "I was going for a walk!"

She blinked. "Oh," she said. "Why didn't you tell me that before you ran away?"

An anger mark popped on his forehead. "Because it's none of your business!" he roared in her face. "And why do you keep on bothering me? What? Is your life so boring that you have to try getting into mine!"

"That's not it at all!" she protested.

"Then what is it?"
She hesitated. "I..."

He calmed down. "Nevermind," he said, closing his eyes and turning away from her. "I don't want to hear it."

He jumped onto the wall. She was surprised. She hadn't thought he could do that.

"Wait!" she called to him.

He didn't. "Go home," was all he said before he vanished behind it.

Minoly sighed. '"All well," she said to herself. "There's always tomarrow."

The sound of footsteps made her turn around. She half expected Hiei to be sneaking up behind her but that wasn't the case. She saw no one.

"That's strange," she said. "I was sure I heard..." She laughed at herself as she tried to shrug it off. "I must have been imagining it," she giggled.

Then she turned around and started for home.

What the girl didn't realize was that, in the shadows, someone else had also been watching Hiei. This person had taken almost as much interest in the fire/ice demon as she had, but not for the same reasons or emotions.

A silver pair of brass knuckles shone in the illumation of a nearby street light on the other side of the wall. Snow white razer sharp teeth were exposed. "I finally found you, you little bastard," a low haunting voice, rasped. "And this time I won't let you get away!"

A/N

What? I can't help it. No matter what story I do I have to have a bad guy. shrug all well, you all probably expected that anyway. :D. Well incase you may not know, Minoly still isn't giving up. I think she's driving Hiei a bit crazy, though. If I were him I'd feel the same way I guess... shrug. All well, that's all I wanted to say. Hope you enjoyed it. Sorry for any spelling, grammer, or character personallity errors, I tried my best.