Monday after classes, they brought all the necessary equipment for Amara's little experiment and installed it in the bedroom. The giant yucca had been pruned, and three new plants were placed in water so they could grow some roots of their own. Once that was done, Kurama returned to the university to continue with his research, while Amara remained in their shared apartment. Since she didn't have a key yet, she had to wait for Kurama to return before leaving the house, but she didn't mind it all that much. He had left her a ton of sources to read and she could finally begin sketching out the introduction and the general structure of the paper.

The girl was quick to feel at home. She took a shower while playing music from the TV in the living room, then unpacked her things. She was going to wait for her hair to dry out naturally, and she barely bothered to put on a pair of underwear and a loose cropped top. Amara had no problem walking that way through the entire apartment, completely unaware that a pair of eyes were watching her. She made some pizza dough, danced around the house, studied - but it was something else that had caught Hiei's attention.

Two silvery long and extremely thin things had suddenly grown in size, enough to fall off their shelf and knock off a lighter and a pack of cigarettes in Kurama's bedroom.

"Oh, not again..." Amara complained out loud. "Deactivate! Come on, Leyla, we're safe. Deactivate already!"

After picking up the pair, it eventually returned to its previous form. What kind of witchcraft was that?

Several minutes later, Hiei had found Kurama in the laboratory which he has been using for nearly a year now. He stopped on the windowsill and waited for Kurama to pay attention.

"Yes, Hiei, what is it?" the red-head mumbled without turning to face him.

"That woman in your house..." he began.

"...What about her?" Kurama urged him to continue.

"She's hiding something. A strange weapon - she talks to it."

Kurama eventually looked up. "I thought so... But she's human, no doubt about that. Besides, I don't feel any spiritual energy coming from her side."

"Are you just going to ignore it? She's inside your house!"

"I can't attack her for no reason - and neither can you. So, unless you have any suggestions, I think I'm going to pretend I'm not aware of her weapon. From what I've seen so far, she doesn't have any intention of actually using that weapon, so if it's just something she carries around, I won't mind."

Hiei looked away. "...I don't trust her."

Instead of pointing out the obvious truth that Hiei wasn't exactly a trusting person, Kurama decided to explore what the demon wasn't saying.

"What else do you not like about her?"

"...She's shameless."

Green eyes searched Hiei's face, trying to understand what exactly he meant by that.

"Do you mind going into detail?"

Turning away, Hiei was ready to leave and a faint blush threatened to show up on his face.

"Why don't you check for yourself, since you're ignoring my warning?"

Once his partner had disappeared, Kurama decided he might as well call it a day. It was already 5 pm and he could afford to take a few hours off. He was well ahead of his schedule with the research on plant communication. The conclusions were beginning to take shape and he knew he had three main clues to follow: electrical impulses, chemical trails, and DNA recognition.

Arriving home early, Kurama took care not to be particularly noisy, yet not to sneak inside either. He could hear music playing. As it was early February, the apartment was rather dark, aside from the light of the TV. A pungent scent hit him as soon as he set foot into the hallway. Every door was open, as well as a window. Amara was laying on her stomach on the carpet in the living room, blowing air onto her freshly painted nails. Beside her were a bottle of nail polish and a small bowl of something that smelled very much like chocolate. Nothing shameless about that, right? Except, perhaps, that she was in her underwear and a rather small top.

Once she became aware that her housemate was looking at her, she smiled. "Hi. Didn't expect you home so early."

Kurama's eyes couldn't help but follow the outline of her mid-back, over her cheeks and thighs, but as much he appreciated the sight, he couldn't help a sense of sadness. Deep scars were covering the Italian's legs from the ankles to her hips.

"Yes, I was done earlier than I expected. Are you...? I mean, if you want to talk about..."

Amara looked up at the TV, pretending to be interested in a music video.

"I was caught in a fire. It happened long ago..."

Kurama nodded slowly in understanding and held back a sigh. He hanged his coat and took off his shoes.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to invade your, um, privacy." That could refer to two aspects and he had only realized it after he had said it.

Amara stood up. "Don't worry. I'll go put on some pants."

Kurama used the opportunity to change his clothes as well into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. Why did Hiei have to make him want to come home early and see her that way? It was clear she didn't expect him to be there and was comfortable being alone. He had his moments of walking around less than fully dressed as well when he knew he wasn't expecting anyone. What was so wrong about Amara doing the same?

The tension was obvious, as Amara had withdrawn into her room and immersed herself into the study.

A knock on her door awakened her back to the reality of her surroundings.

"Yes?"

"Is it alright if I come in?"

The girl rolled her eyes just for a moment. It was his apartment, he could do whatever he wanted.

"Sure."

Kurama entered the room which used to be his until a few days before.

"I've made some dinner and I was wondering if you're hungry, by any chance?"

He saw her considering the idea for a painful amount of time.

"What's for dinner?"

"Salmon and grilled vegetables."

"And wine?"

"...Sadly, no. Do you want wine?"

Amara stood up from the corner of the bed and stretched her arms straight above her head, tensing up her legs and abdomen as well.

"If you told me earlier, I could have placed an order... But if we go out right now, the food will get cold, right?"

He nodded. "Yes, most likely. Is there a certain reason why you wanted to drink?"

Amara shot him a look, though it was unintentional. She quickly looked away. That demon had set off her weapon with his energy, and not even half an hour later, Shuichi had returned home unusually quiet. These two events simply had to be linked - it was too much of a coincidence.

"Nah... Just that fish goes well with wine. Well, certain types, not all of them, you know..."

Kurama nodded. There was clearly something wrong. He allowed Amara to leave the room first and he followed her into the kitchen. His plating wasn't anything special since he didn't think it was needed, but after having felt Amara's coldness, he certainly wished he would have made it a little bit extra.

They sat down in silence and he watched Amara picking at her food.

"Is everything alright?"

The softness in his tone made her look up at him. The redhead seemed concerned.

"...I don't have such an appetite," the girl sighed.

"I'm sorry if I've seen what I shouldn't have. It was not intentional, I assure you."

"Maybe, but I hate it..." she mumbled. "Not that you saw - I don't care. It's the scars that I truly hate..."

As much as curiosity was gathering on the tip of his tongue, Kurama remained silent. If she was about to open up about her past, then he shouldn't force her. There was the risk of never finding out about her experiences if he tried to rush her.

"I told you I was caught in a fire... I've lost many people dear to me then, and I nearly died. In a way, I did die, because I was never the same afterward... It took me over a year to be able to move again, and another few months until I learned how to walk all over again. I was six years old when it happened. Whenever I see the scars, I remember everything, but it's easier to ignore them when I'm on my own."

After a moment of thought, a bitter smile came upon his face.

"You know, a friend once told me that there is no person who doesn't carry scars, and if there were, they would be a shallow soul."

Amara paused, repeating the phrase in her mind. There was something so obvious about this piece of truth, that she somehow couldn't see before, that it felt like Kurama had just opened her eyes for her.

"That makes a lot of sense. How come it's never crossed my mind?"

Kurama smiled. "That was my reaction as well."

"What was that discussion about, when your friend told you this?"

"I've... lost someone, a friend and a partner, a long time ago. Somebody had tried to manipulate me into doing something by using that memory of mine. They'd opened up an old wound. Hearing that phrase helped me make peace with reality once more and move on."

She nodded slowly. "I see... Well, I hope there's a special place in hell for people who do this. It's never acceptable to use the memory of the dead."

Kurama nodded slowly. As they were done eating, he began gathering the dishes and cleaning the table. Amara stood up and cracked her fingers above her head.

"I'll do the dishes," she offered.

"If you insist..."

Kurama stayed in the kitchen a little longer, waiting for Amara to be done with the dishes and telling her where to put everything away. Even so, deep bellow his calm surface, there was worry taking root and a sense of curiosity that was threatening to keep him awake throughout the night. The silence between them was unnatural and so, he broke it.

"We should be heading to bed..."

She hummed in agreement. "Yeah, go ahead, if you want."

"What about you?"

"I think I'll smoke one, then... I don't know. But I'll be quiet, don't worry."

His instincts were correct once more. She had no intention to sleep. "I think I could use a minute or two outside."

The Italian nodded. She took a cigarette and a lighter, as Kurama went on and opened the door to the balcony. The girl crossed the living room and followed him outside, then lit her cigarette and took a deep breath of the night air combined with smoke.

"Do you plan on sleeping tonight?" he asked, leaning against the railway with his elbows.

Amara stood by his side, leaning with her back against the metal edge and looking up towards the sky.

"Probably not."

"Do you mind sharing the reason for that?"

The Italian shrugged. "I'll get nightmares. Why sleep and wake up every hour or so, when I can stay up and avoid all that? With some luck, by tomorrow night, I'll be too exhausted for nightmares."

"Is this the usual, or...?"

"I remembered a few things I shouldn't have... It's alright, though. It happens sometimes."

A thought was spinning through his mind. Had she been an Asian girl, he wouldn't have dared to ask for something like this, given it could have been taken as an insult. However, the West raised its girls differently. After a minute of silence and Amara blowing out several small white clouds, he brought himself to say it.

"Would you still avoid sleep if you were to have some company?"

Slowly, she turned her head towards him. Her violet hair was hanging over her shoulder and high above the city below them.

"I don't know..." she whispered, right before putting out the cigarette butt. "We should buy an ashtray," she pointed out as she straightened her back and slowly stumbled inside.

"We will," Kurama agreed as he followed and closed the door between the warm, slightly humid air of the living room and the cold, dry air of the city.

Although she didn't answer his question directly, she didn't deny it either.

"If you want, you're welcome - I just wanted to let you know. Nothing has to happen."

Silent, Amara went into her room. A few minutes later, she came back in a tank top and a pair of shorts.

Author's notes:

Hello, I'm glad you've made it this far. For the sake of the rating, I will be saving the more intense scenes into a different story.

"Research: Cut scenes" will be out soon, rated M. Young readers are advised to stick to the main story.

Please review and favorite!

-NightOwl