Okay people I am really sorry it took so long to update this and this AN isn't going to be very long because this is literally the third time I had to rewrite this chapter FROM SCRATCH! So I'm really ticked off right now!

Thanks to all my patient reviewers!

Chapter 7: Rejected

Ash walked into the temple house to find Kurama sitting on the couch reading some book. She walked over and sat next to him Ginsei going and laying in her lap.

"Did you guys come up with a conclusion about what to do?" Ash asked gently petting the little kitsune. Kurama stopped and looked at her a moment before answering.

"No not yet." The slightest bit of sadness was evident in his voice although he hid it well.

"We'll figure something out." She said suddenly standing up again.

"Where are you going so suddenly?"

"To find Hiei."

"Well he's o-."

"I know." She said heading for the front door. "Your awareness has increased I see."

"Yeah let's go with that!" She said jokingly then going out the door before he could say anything further about it.

Kurama smirked a bit then looked down at the silver haired kitsune petting it as Ash had done before, "she doesn't stay in one place for very long does she?" He asked as the fox gave a little yip curling into a ball against her master.

Meanwhile Ash walked towards where she felt Hiei's ki was thinking again about what that guy Kyo had said before…

Flashback:

"Then how did your guy win your heart?" Kyo asked as she looked at him flatly trying to decide whether or not to tell him… then again she really didn't know why Hiei loved her so much she wasn't anything special right?

"I really don't know." She said shutting her eyes as that sadness went threw her mind again.

(Anyone ever notice there is a lot of denial in my stories?)

"Well if I can ask how do you to express that you like each other then? Like… if you don't even know how he won you over then do you really know him?" Ash had to admit the brown-eyed boy explained.

End Flashback:

She shook the memory off but some of it still remained in her mind she planned on asking Hiei why he loved her and how they had gotten to where they were today.

Suddenly she stopped as new thoughts came to mind, 'what if he is upset with me about it?' She thought even though her legs continued to walk down the long temple steps.

'What if he gets upset because I do not know why he loves me… or vise versa." She thought to herself getting even more concerned with ever step she took.

--

Walking closer to where her koi, Hiei's ki was she finally found him sitting under a tree as if he had been sleeping. Sensing her presence his eyes opened and he stood up.

When she finally stood right in front of him he looked upon her something seemed… off in a way. Her gray eyes were unfocused as though she was in thought over something.

"Ash?" He finally asked as she blinked and the look faded from her features. "Hiei I need to ask you something very important."

'Here it goes.' She thoughts trying not to let her true emotions be shown to him. Even to her it was unclear exactly what she was feeling for a long time now she had no control of what she felt she took it as the day brought it with no question.

Thinking about it made a deep sense of confusion and unknown pain run threw her head and she realized what she had been so blinded by before… she had no control over herself.

It was as if she was a walking body with no soul to it living each day with no meaning putting on a fake face for everyone to believe was the truth. But for her she knew no truth and knew no lie.

(Wow I have to say it's been a while since I wrote a scene like that and I loved every minute of it! I'm good at writing explaining scene's like that I suppose!)

He nodded signaling for her to ask the question, "Hiei why do you love me?" His eyes slightly widened at the question that should have stuck so well to her.

Hiei's P.O.V

Had I not made myself clear numerous times? Had I not told her why and expressed myself in such ways for her to understand? Or was she simply hiding confusion for some foolish reason?

She seemed unfinished… that that wasn't the only question in her mind so I kept silent waiting for her to continue on… I would question later.

Normal P.O.V

"Why do I love you? How did all of this happen?" She continued shutting her eyes to hide the tears she felt like… needed to shed.

What she needed right now was for her only love to hold her and tell her everything would be okay and that he wouldn't let anything happen to her… be able to stop her river of tears. But something in her heart told her that would not happen.

Hiei remained quiet for a moment until she looked back up at him, "have I not made myself clear to you?" He asked her finally releasing his thoughts.

"Have you been blinded for the last months of everything?" He questioned, every word seemed like acid to her every touch burning her with no show for an end.

"I'm sorry Hiei I need answers." She explained feeling even more foolish for her actions and her unknowing. HE starred at her for a moment as she starred back at his now blank look.

"I can't answer you it seems you need to figure this out for yourself." He said the same feeling going threw her. As for Hiei he just felt like making himself clear to her and make her understand how upset he was about her unknowing.

"I'm sorry Hiei." She admitted looking down at the ground.

"No you have foolishly blinded yourself and lived your life a lie making me and everyone else live a lie to. It's not enough for you to live in unknowing, not admitting, and lying you had to bring everyone down with you."

Ash could not stop the tears that flowed from her eyes as he spoke the words that so easily burned a whole threw her heart and soul. "I'm so sorry." She said.

"No it is unforgivable." He said walking away into the dense forest still white with winter's snow. Ash collapsed to her knees wrapping one arm around herself, "I'm sorry Hiei." She repeated although the sad reality was knowing that he wouldn't turn and didn't care.

After a moment she picked herself up and started back to the temple wiping the tears from her eyes just to be replaced with newly fallen salty tears.

The feeling of being rejected weighed heavily on her heart and she was unable to take it… the only one who loved her had now left her and didn't care how could she live with this?

--

She walked the rest of the way up the temple and tried to clean herself up as best she could before walking into the house even though she could still feel the remnants of tears on her hot face.

Walking threw the door Kurama took one look at her and knew something was wrong, "Ash what's wrong?" He questioned standing up and going towards her.

She shook her head for fears of breaking down again if she spoke anything, "are you sure?" He questioned trying not to pry into anything she did not want to reveal at the moment.

She nodded then opened her mouth to respond, "I'm going to bed." Her voice sounded weak and broken to the cunning fox as if she had been threw a emotional incident just moments before.

He nodded and she walked down the dark hallway. Feeling the security of her room pass threw her at the first step into her dark room she shut the door and sat against a nearby wall.

Looking up at a calendar the date read, March 5th how could she have forgotten that date! Today was her birthday and she had forgotten all about it!

(Actually March 5th is her B-day cause that's when I first published the story so technically that's when she was born!)

"Happy birthday to me." She sang slowly and sadly knowing she wasn't able to spend her birthday with her friends or even her lover.

"Happy birthday to me." She said again holding her head in her hands as new tears started down her face. Slowly she crawled up into her bed silently crying herself into a restless sleep.

---NEXT MORNING---

The next morning Ash woke up with a conclusion coming to mind. It was something she did not like but something she felt she had to do.

'I don't want to bring anyone down anymore.' She thought getting up and dressing herself in complete black and grabbing a piece of paper and pen.

Going out into the kitchen she noticed that no one was up yet which proved to be a good thing for her. Scribbling down on the paper a quick note she placed it on the table and headed for the door.

Opening the door silently she turned and took one last look around the temple that had come to be called her home. She had spent so many precious memories in each room.

Arguing with Yusuke and Kuwabara, sitting with Hiei on the windowsill, spending Christmas with her friends… no they weren't friends to her… they were her family.

Something tugged at her heart to just close the door and not do something so foolish as this but she ignored it forcing herself to go out into the dawns sun knowing full and well that she may never see her temple home again.

--

By the time the sun had come fully up Kurama was shaken out of his light sleep only to find Yusuke shaking him furiously with Kuwabara next to him. "What are you two doing here so early?" He questioned.

"No time for that where is Ash!" Yusuke asked fright in his eyes and voice. "She was in her room last why?" Kurama questioned rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"No she's not." Kuwabara said.

"Did you check around the temple?" The kitsune questioned sitting up.

"Everywhere!" Yusuke almost shouted. "Plus we found this when we were raiding the kitchen." Kuwabara explained as Kurama shook his head and took the offered, it read…

Dear whoever is reading this,

I don't want to bring anyone down further then I already have. I don't exactly like the decision I made but it is for the best. You all have been my family and I thank you for all your kindness but I can't stand hurting you any longer. See you in the face battle.

Your friend always

Ash

Kurama finished reading it but studied the last line a few more times. 'See you in the face of battle.' What did she mean by that? IT made no sense even to him.

"Did you find Hiei?" He questioned again snapping out of his thoughts. "No we tried but as we started searching for him he masked his energy completely!" Yusuke explained.

Kurama smirked knowing he shouldn't have underestimated the fire demon's nature. "He doesn't want to be found… but why?" Kurama said more to himself.

Although a strong feeling in him told him Hiei was linked to all of this… why Ash came home upset yesterday, and why she left so suddenly. She wouldn't leave without telling anyone if she didn't have something set in her mind and obviously it was just that.

"How should we know?" Kuwabara asked as Kurama got up and directed them out deciding to get dressed and go search for Hiei.

-

Meanwhile Hiei sat in a tree in the dense forest still contemplating over what he had done the previous day. It had taken him about an hour before he started thinking about things clearly and really understood what he had done.

'She was serious.' He thought to himself. 'She wanted… needed the help and I turned my back on her.' He mentally smacked himself for his actions.

He had been so caught up in his thoughts that he hadn't sensed Kurama come near him. "Hiei." He called up. Before Hiei could flit away again the fox's voice caught him.

"This is serious you can't leave." Hiei thought quickly but finally jumped down to see Kurama holding a piece of paper. "What is that?"

"Ash is gone." He explained handing Hiei the note that he instantly snatched away and read over. 'What did I do?' He thought to himself.

"Hiei do you know why she left so suddenly?" Kurama asked looking at his friend's blank face, it was obvious to him that he was trying to hide something.

"She asked why I loved her and other questions like that." He started to admit. "I got upset and told her she lived a lie and mostly all of this." Kurama was silent a moment contemplating over this new information. Now it all made sense to him.

"Why would you turn your love away?" There was no answer from Hiei and obviously Kurama didn't understand what Hiei was trying to say threw his silence.

"Hiei why w-."

"I don't know!" He shouted as a flame engulfed him for a second knocking Kurama away then diminishing leaving Hiei looking dead at him and leaving them in a silence.

"I'm sorry it was just a little much to take in." Kurama finally said as Hiei looked away. "Hn." He replied simply.

"Well we need to find her." Kurama said as they started to walk away, Hiei kept silent wishing he could do something to stop what was happening now.

--

At this time Ash who had been walking threw another very dense forest and many walls of energy used to keep out both humans and weak demons. Ash however had no trouble getting threw either.

But now each step she took she felt herself falling into the inevitable, knowing she was about to give up all freedom she had before for a life of unwanted power and killing… something she did not look forward to.

Reaching the end of the forest revealed the hill she stood on and a black castle standing in front of her maybe 5 meter's away. "Ryu's castle… my new home." She said peering upon what lat ahead of her.

From his chair in the large dark control room Ryu smirked at the site of Ash willingly giving herself to him. "I knew you would come back to me my love." He said softly getting up and walking out of the room with Shinku right behind him.

He was sure the next few days would be very interesting seeing as she would not struggle to anything he did or said to her… and he looked forward to every moment of it.

A/N: YES you read right Ash is giving herself willingly to Ryu.

YES Hiei wasn't being taken over when he said those things to her

And YES Ash will be fighting against the gang!

Everyone please send a long review since I made a long chapter for everyone and I have everything written out in my mind so updates will be quicker! Any comments are wanted!

Although the only thing that could get me is writing Ryu's sayings you all know he is very slick with what he says so that might pose as a problem with me… oh well!

Forbiddensoul562 waiting for those reviews!