I don't own anyone you know…duh

But he didn't do anything he just watched as she sadly left room. "Try not to die ok?" She didn't even turn he only heard her voice as she got rather away. How had things gone so wrong? Just earlier that day she had left with a sparkling smile on her face. Now she looked like a close friend had died. He wanted to go after her but his pride would not allow it. 'Hn. I will not go after her like a lost puppy. This is what happens when feelings get involved. Where the hell is she going anyway?' He stared at the door a while before getting to his feet not to go after Raven to do the only thing he was certain to him, train, fight, win, survive. Fighting was difficult it was dangerous but Hiei understood it. Raven, Love were both dangerous and difficult but he couldn't get his head around either.

Raven didn't know where she was walking but she had to get away, as far away from Hiei's eyes as she could, her body still ached terribly from earlier that day, she winced with every step but it didn't matter she had a feeling of numbness, she felt as though her body and mind were completely detached. 'Why am I taking this so hard? I knew Hiei didn't love me. How could he? How could anyone?' She clenched her fists as she felt tears brim in her eyes. 'I was meant to be alone I really was. I just need to get used to that. Get it through my thick mushy skull' She bit her lip. Hiei hadn't rejected her, hadn't said that they were through, he didn't even say that he minded her love, but it didn't matter Raven felt crushed. When Hiei referred to love as just a word she wondered if maybe he was right, that love wasn't really anything at all, just some flowery thing for human romance novels. It was disheartening. Raven had always hoped someone would love her, hoped someone could, but to think that love was…just a word made everything seem hollow. She heard rustling in the grass behind her. 'Is Hiei following me? I can't out run him damnit. The sneaky little bastard I'll clock him when he gets here' She turned around. "Listen Hiei I know I'm being an over sensitive bit… Yuknia?" Raven watched the small blue haired apparition appear from the darkness of the night.

"Hello there. I hope you don't mind, I followed you" She had such a warm smile for an ice demon.

'Well no but why… why did you follow me?" Raven just blinked she felt very lost and though she had gone off to be alone from everyone Yukina's presence made her calm.

"Well when you left you seemed so angry. Did you and Hiei get in a fight?" She had such a soft voice she was resembled a snowflake waiting to melt.

"I guess" 'it was like we were having two separate fights that we were just shouting at one another. He wanted me to go home and I… hell I don't even know what I wanted' Raven's face was scrunched like she had bit into a lemon and was pissed at it.

"When you left you seemed so… sad. I just hate to see one of my friends unhappy"

"Friends you just met me"



"Well you've been nothing but nice to me since we met I guess I just considered us friends" There was a questioning tone in her voice.

"Well I'd like that. You're a very sweet girl Yukina" Raven tried to give a smile but it quickly slipped off her face.

"Me too." Yukina's smile was far more genuine and long lasting. "Oh please tell me what's wrong you seem like you're going to cry" even with a smile her voice couldn't hide her emotion, her concern.

"Tell me. Do you. Do you think love is real, like a real thing that someone can feel?" Raven's eyes looked like they were searching for something to hold onto something to calm them.

"Very much so. I believe love is the cornerstone for everything the good the bad and the ugly." Yukina nodded confidently.

"I'm not so sure. I'm not so sure it exists and it makes me feel so…so nothing, every things blank, like I woke up from a coma and I don't know what to do where to go, who I am." Raven looked down at her feet. 'I need to go, go home, I need to be alone' She gave a heavy sigh.

"Did you tell Hiei you loved him?' Yukina watched the poor witch squirm in her boots.

"I guess" Raven shrugged.

"You guess. I'm sorry I don't understand?"

"I said it" She paused "and I meant it!' She scrambled to get the words out, that was a key point. "But I don't know once I, you know said it, Hiei made a remark and it's like I took it back. It was something so small that sent me off walking in the dark that now I don't even know why I said it. Hell maybe I didn't mean it" she wanted to cry but like Hiei she was to proud for that 'I won't be a sad puppy licking my wounds. I won't'

"If you didn't mean it I doubt you'd be feeling so bad" Yukina shook her head.

"You should be a therapist you know" Raven scoffed.

"Just some friendly advice is all. What did Hiei say that made you so sad?"

"He said that why would I be afraid a word. He said love was a word. I explained to him that it was a feeling he might have gotten it, might not have by then I was already upset. I'm a fool"

"A fool in love perhaps. You've pent up all these emotions for a very long time I imagine. Letting them out now you feel empty and confused like an animal let into the wild to run free but nowhere to go"

"That's all well and good. Very philosophical. You sure you're not just reading fortune cookie slips to me? Anyway point is, knowing that I have nowhere to go from here doesn't help me in the slightest point is, I'm lost now like an idiot, who gets lost in their own head. I'll tell you who, nut jobs" Raven vented.



"well I hate to burst you bubble but what you're feeling isn't just for nut cases or even just for you we all feel that way sometimes. We all get lost"

"Well what do I do now?"

"I can't tell you what to do Raven. But, if you're really in love it's not going away, you'll always feel it. It'll always tug at your heart. Maybe instead of going over in your mind what could go wrong, you should jump in head first and see what will go right. You can't learn love from a distance it's an intimate emotion one that needs to be embraced without inhabitation."

"Huh. Well I'm sold any problems I have I'm coming to you, god you've got a lot of smart things to say Yukina" Raven grinned, Yukina blushed. 'Just more flowery words. Why is this so confusing damnit why can't love be more straight forward? I just want to know what love is and what I need to do with it' Her mind was working hard to try to solve the rubix cube that is love.

"I hope I helped. News of you and Hiei being a couple was surprising but looking back it should've been obvious. You're good for each other and I wish you two only the best. Talk to him won't you?" Yukina tried to judge by Raven's demeanor how she was feeling but she seemed as confused as ever though not as upset as before. "Hiei's been very nice to me so I feel a close attachment to him" 'if you only knew' Raven gave a small chuckle. And this morning even when Yuske teased him I could see that being around you made him happy. Between you and me I think he loves you too. You know as well as anybody that Hiei's very guarded so he might not come outright with it but you'll be able to know if he does" Yukina ended her sermon on Raven's dilemma. "Will you come back inside?"

"No not right now I...I still need to clear my head a bit" Raven shook her head.

"Well I'll see you later then. Don't frown raven. Things will solve themselves" Yukina waved as she headed back to the hotel. Raven turned away and walked farther into the random direction she had chosen.

--At the shore of break neck island--

"Your bad attitude isn't going to ruin my day because I found my secret weapon my totally fresh bad guy slicing and dicing mega awesome super sword" Kuwabara gloated excitedly to a mourning Yuske.

"Do you think it's possible that you could shut up?" Hiei appeared from behind a stone wall his eyes glowing red like coals.

"Hey Hiei" Yuske greeted the demon unenthusiastically.

'You really shouldn't sneak up on someone who's holding the world's most powerful sword. Ahhh Eww Eww! What the heck happened to your arm" Kuwabara cringed at the sight of Hiei's bruised and bloodied arm.

"It wouldn't obey when I gave it a specific command so I decided it needed to be punished" Hiei looked into his palm the pain would be worth it, he would not allow himself to be defeated, not if there was 

anything in him that could help it. He had to win he had to survive. When this hell was over he could fight at his on leisure, on his terms there was only one more task at hand before he could go home, to Raven's window sill where he was content. 'Tonight it must be resolved tonight. I need absolutely no distractions when the sun rises my only focus can be victory. I will find her tonight, fix this.' This day had been a very tiring one and Hiei had nothing to look forward to a far more brutal day in his near future.

"Ok he's weird. Too much information for me" Kuwabara laughed nervously. The group dispersed quickly after that to deal with the few hours before the fight as they chose.

--At a different shore on break neck island--

Raven lied on a rock staring up at the stars hoping for either a sign that told her what to do or a meteor to crash on her and end her horrible confusing existence. "I need you to bandage my arm for me. I'd do it myself but I want wards on it to keep the dragon truly under wraps. No one on this island is better with wards than you" Hiei stood behind her looking over the lanky girl whose eyes were gazing into nothingness.

"Putting a talisman in a boot is different than holding back a dragon. But I'll do my best. Did you bring bandages or do I need to go back to the hotel?" Raven didn't turn her head to see Hiei or his scared arm.

"Hn. Here" He threw a bundle of bandages and talisman notes at her. Raven sat up organizing the materials to her liking and only then did she turn to Hiei, she didn't dare look at his face but at her arm, she let out a small gasp.

"Hiei what the hell did you do shove your hand in a lawn mower? Holy cow you really did a number. Well get over here idiot and I'll try to patch you up best I can." She began to wrap the bandages first over her fingers then slowly up his arm. "You know over this past year I've gotten pretty good at this remember that night in October you fell while fighting that-" She had been trying to fill the silence so as to ignore the topic all together but as she knew it would, it failed.

"I remember. You would look at me then" He noted pulling his arm away from her forcing her to look into his face. "Not now? Hn. Raven I didn't know this w...love thing meant so much to you "He wouldn't crawl back to her she needed to help them through this as well.

"It meant a lot but I kind of blew it out of proportion Hiei. I'm sorry" She was willing to apologize for the way she overreacted.

"Explain it to me. It's when two people who are mates care about each other?" He chose his words carefully looking at her for guidance.

'Yes, they care about them a lot, more than they care about most other people. Love means that you want someone to be part of your life for quite some time" Raven pulled Hiei's arm back so she could finish bandaging him. Hiei watched her delicately dress his wounds, being ever so careful not to be sloppy not to miss a bit of his skin. When she tied it off he made a fist moving his arm to make sure it would work for him during battle. He took his bandaged a hand and cupped her face within his palm he 

looked into her eyes studying her. "It's not going to fall to pieces Hiei" She put a hand over his. 'If I die tomorrow and she thinks I don't...love her we'll both be damned forever' He kissed her softly pulling back to see what expression was on her face.

"Will it make you smile if I said I love you? That scowl is getting quite old"

"You do it much better Hiei" She grinned.

"Hn" He removed his hand from her face and placed it on her back leaning her down on the rock, his hands above her shoulders he held himself over her. "Fool yes or no?" He waited impatiently for her answer.

"Only if you want to" Raven bit her lip. Hiei moved so that Raven was on top of him their warm bodies pressed together in contrast to the cold air.

"I don't want to say it" Hiei watched her eyes sadden. With no warning he bit her where her shoulder met her neck digging his sharp demon teeth into her flees. He could hear her whimper in pain as he let go, he gave her a hard lip crushing kiss before running his hand over the spot some blood smearing over his fingers he licked it off. "You always taste like hot tea" He gave a devilish grin.

"What the fuck was that?" She panted she had involuntarily wrapped her arms tight around Hiei's frame digging her fingernails into his back.

"I marked you" He stated nonchalantly before kissing her again, she was getting dizzy still in shock from the hard bite and adrenalin filled kisses.

"W...What?"

"Hn. You've been with the humans too long. When a demon picks a mate as theirs, the one they want for as long as that mate is alive. They mark them. I want you now and tomorrow and as long as you live which with all the wondering on dangerous islands might not be so long. I'm taking a gamble that I can tolerate your annoying ways for that long" He ran his hands through her hair he liked the almost stupefied look on her face.

"But you said you didn't love me" Her face got sad again as she collected her thoughts she ran her hand over the mark. Hiei closed his fist among Raven's red hair pulling her down for another kiss. When they pulled away Hiei looked up at her a lost look on his face as well. Raven was about to get up when.

"Wait" Hiei sighed "Hn impatient fool" words swirled in his head. He needed to find a way to break it to her.