After finding out that I had to start training right away, I rushed off to my room to peel off my leotard and tights. I didn't want to waste time going through my bags to find fresh clothes so I just quickly put a sports bra over my regular one and put my sweats and tank top back on. Thinking that Hiei wasn't the type to have his time wasted, I quickly went to the bathroom and had a tall glass of water from the kitchen so I didn't have to worry about it later.

I took a deep breath hoping it would help my lack of energy before rushing off to the clearing Hiei was talking about. When I arrived, I noticed all the guys were there including Genkai. Great... An audience. Yusuke and Kuwabara were off to the side talking while Kurama was standing not that far off listening to Genkai. Hiei, on the other hand, was standing in the middle of the clearing looking rather impatient.

Not wanting to let his highness wait any longer I walked up to Hiei trying my best to not show how tired I had gotten. "So... Let's do... this?" Way to sound confident, Aly-Jay...

Hiei narrowed his eyes at me before taking a step back in some kind of battle stance before creating some kind of black fire ball in his hand. Not even a second later he threw it at me.

I gasped and tried to dodge to my right but it wasn't any good. The fire ball hit me square in the left shoulder. The burning sensation was so intense that I couldn't help but let out a horrifying scream before falling on my back.

"What the heck, Hiei?" I heard Kuwabara yell.

I went to hold onto my shoulder but the moment I got too close it only made the pain increase. Don't cry. Don't cry. Don't cry. Shaking, I rolled over to crawl onto my knees and hold my left arm against my chest.

"Was that really necessary, Hiei?" Genkai said, as she began to walk over to me.

"Why should I waste my time on her if she can't even dodge a simple fire ball?"

If I wasn't in so much pain at the moment, I would have tried to rip him a new one for that comment. As I was hunched over I could hear the rest of the gang rushing over to me. It wasn't much of a surprise to hear them trying to see if I was okay. It was even less of a surprise to hear Kuwabara's voice over everyone else. I felt Genkai place a hand on my back before telling me to roll over. When I was on my back, Genkai leaned down to look at the burn. Before she could do anything, the pain suddenly increased but this time it felt five times more intense. I arched my back before letting out a scream. Next thing I knew, the pain was completely gone and I was left panting.

"What the-" I heard Genkai say in shock. "It's gone."

"How is that possible?" Kuwabara said.

Frowning, I looked at my shoulder only to see that it looked perfectly fine. I sat up and gently poked it with my finger. "How could that have happened?" I continued to stare at my shoulder before something occurred to me. "Could it be because of my fire demon side?"

Genkai shrugged slightly. "It's the only thing I could think of. But I've never seen anything like that happen before. Hmm."

I looked over at Hiei and caught him starting at my shoulder with an odd expression on his face. When he saw me looking at him he quickly averted her gaze. After a second, I got back up onto my feet and let out a breath sharply. I took a step towards Hiei before saying, "Something tells me that you're not done yet."

Hiei looked over at me before he pulled his cloak off and threw it aside. "I'm telling you right now, I am not going to go easy on you. If I'm the one that has to train you, than you better expect to work hard."

With a frown, I crossed my arms. "For some reason, I'm not surprised."

The next two hours were a living hell. For some reason, I found it hard to retain some of the key moves. That, and I realized my balance from ballet did not translate into fighting. At one point I'm pretty sure I violated the ground without meaning to. When I got up from another horrible dodge, I couldn't hide the fact that I was completely exhausted. I stumbled before I could get my balance but it didn't stop the forest from spinning. As I grabbed my head with both hands I let out a tired sigh.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Hiei cross his arms. The little jerk hasn't even broken a sweat. "Humph, typical human, can barely stand up. I'm done with you today."

Too tired to come up with some kind of come back, I simply nodded and started to walk over to the house. When I reached the guys they got up from their sitting position and walked with me towards the house.

Yusuke handed me an unopened candy bar. "We went off and got snacks an hour ago. We all know how Hiei is so I figured you'd need this."

"Thanks," I said as I grabbed it. It took longer than it should have to open it since I had a hard time closing my hand enough to get it open. When I was finally able to take a bite, I couldn't help but moan at the fact that I had food in my mouth. Ignoring the guys chuckling, I walked into the house and looked to my right at the stairs. I took a step towards it and sighed. There was no way I'd make it up the stairs.

"You okay, Aly-Jay?" Kurama asked.

"Yeah I'm just going to," I sat down on the second step, "rest for a little bit."

Kurama smiled down at me before asking, "Are you sure?"
I simply nodded and rested my head on one of the steps. I'll rest my eyes for one second, just for one second. When I opened my eyes five seconds later I found myself lying in bed. What? I sat up only to groan and flop back down. My whole body felt stiff, god, even my nose and ears. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Something didn't feel right. I shifted around a bit but it only made the feeling worse. I looked down at myself and noticed I was wearing the same clothes as yesterday. The sweat from the major work out made the clothes stick to my body and go all stiff. Gross. Too gross. That alone made me find the will to get up. After grabbing a towel that was sitting at the desk chair and a change of clothes I headed to the bathroom to shower. Since I felt gross and stiff, I took a lot longer than necessary in the shower.

When I finally got out, I felt a lot better; still stiff, but a lot better. I went to my room to put the clothes in a laundry hamper just in time to see Mizu come in through the window. When he saw me he meowed and ran up to me, and rubbed himself against me legs. I picked him up and snuggled him a little. Looks like someone was worried about me. He struggled in my arms a little so I placed him on the bed. As I was leaning down I took a glance at my clock beside the bed. Only six AM? Really? I looked out into the hall way and saw that all the lights were out and the doors were closed. I'm pretty sure I heard some snoring as well. Half a second later my stomach yelled at me to go get some breakfast.

It didn't need to tell me twice. I was in the mood for some french toast so I made my way down stairs, through the living room, and into the kitchen at the back of the house. Mizu followed me down and into the kitchen while doing some exploring on the way. As he wondered, I could tell that he didn't stay out of eye sight for very long. I went over to the fridge and opened what I thought would be a breadbox. Bingo. Next came the butter and eggs. As I went about making them, I even found some maple syrup. However, with the first few that I made my hunger began to get worse. As I placed three more onto the pan, I couldn't wait any longer so I grabbed one and ripped it in half then shoved one half in my mouth without thinking. It burned my tongue but I didn't care. All I knew was that I need to eat something, anything. When I shoved the second half into my mouth, I realized that it was because of the lack of energy. Not this again...

Then another thought came to mind. Forks! I should have checked for forks and knifes before I started making them. I started going through a bunch of drawers looking for any kind of cutlery. It was on my fourth try when I found them. There was a bunch of forks and knifes next to some chopsticks. Phew, good. I made a mental note on the drawer was so I could grab them when everyone was ready to eat.

I took control of my hunger and waited until I finished cooking enough french toast for everyone. When I was making the last of it I heard the guys start to work their way downstairs. I found it a little odd that they woke up at around the same time, but I'm sure with them living together for so long makes them get on the same kind of schedule.

"What's that smell?" I heard Yusuke ask. "It's smells... good."

"Really good," Kuwabara added.

As they started to head to the kitchen, I grabbed the plate out of the oven that had the ones I made first and some forks and knifes. Just as I was finished placing everything on the island, the guys walked into the kitchen.

"Whoa!" Kuwabara said. "What is this?"
I handed him an empty plate and a fork and knife. "French toast. I woke up really early this morning and had a craving for them. It seemed rude to not make some for everybody."

The three of them looked a little excited as they sat around the island and helped themselves to a few. That's when I noticed Hiei wasn't with them. After looking around the room I realized he wasn't around at all. "Where's Hiei?"

Speak of the devil, and he shall appear. I heard the front door open and peeked out of the kitchen to see Hiei walk in. Did he sleep at all? As I watched him go sit at the window seat, I saw that his hair and cloak where wet; I looked out the window and saw that it was raining. After he showed no sign of coming for breakfast I decided to grab a plate for him. I placed two pieces on a plate and added a little syrup. I took a deep breath to calm my rising nerves before going over to Hiei. He narrowed his eyes at me when I reached out the plate to him, but he didn't grab it.

"Look," I started, "I know our first day of training wasn't that successful but I want you to know that I don't plan on giving up. I've had to deal with these... sides fighting since I was little. I want nothing more than to be able to take these bracelets off and stop hiding. So here, a peace offering." I placed the plate by his feet since that was the only area there was space. Worried about what he might say, I quickly turned around and headed back into the kitchen.

I avoided Kurama's gaze when I went to grab my own plate. There were eight pieces left so I grabbed four. I knew I was going to need energy so I decided sugar was the way to go. I sat next to Kuwabara as he went to grab another piece.

"These are really good, Aly-Jay. I guess having a girl in this house has some advantages."

"Thanks," I said with a laugh. When I was done eating and washing my plate I went to go grab the plate I gave to Hiei. Expecting the plate to be untouched, I was surprised to see the plate completely empty and Hiei gone. I couldn't help but stare for a second before grabbing it and going to clean it. When all was said and done I thought it was finally time to stretch out my stiff muscles. Since I had changed into loose comfortable clothes I didn't have to change so I went straight to the front door. After taking one step outside, I tilted my head back and let some of the rain fall onto my face. The rain always brought a sense of peace since I've been more in touch with my water demon side then my fire demon side. As I made my way to the room I was dancing in yesterday I ran into Kurama.

"Hi, Kurama," I said with a smile.

"Hello, Aly-Jay. I know you had a tough day yesterday, but I think we can all agree that we need to figure out what is going on with your powers. I hope you don't mind."

I shook my head. "Nah, that's fine, although I would like to stretch a little."

"That's fine. The guys wanted to join as well so I hope you don't mind them training as well." He started to walk towards the room so I followed him.

Everyone was already there when Kurama and I arrived. Since the guys wanted to work on their stuff as well we all stretched together. While I tried to do some basic stretches, I found it didn't get rid of a lot of the stiffness. But when I started to work on my over splits I began to feel a lot better. When I was done, and put everything back into place, I looked over at everyone to see a lot of them staring at me. I froze and looked down at myself to see if anything embarrassing was showing.

I frowned and looked back at them. "What?"

"How can you do that?" Kuwabara asked.

"Do what? You guys are pretty flexible to."

"I have never seen anyone do those splits before," Yusuke added.

"The over splits? It comes with a lot of practice." There was a pause. "So, what am I doing today?"

Kurama stood up and came up to me. "Today I thought we could work on your strength. Is there anything you want to start first?"

As a dancer, I was always told that we needed to look like athletes from the waist down and artists from the waist up. Needless to say I have absolutely no upper body strength. To make a point to Kurama, I lifted one of my arms at an angle and flexed; there was no change. "I'd say arms" Everyone but Hiei chuckled before we got started.

When it was time for lunch I could barely lift my arms anymore. And it was like this for weeks. My days were filled with training and I could see a lot of improvement. However, it seems like my clumsy-ness really slowed down my dodging. If I wasn't getting hit by something, I was kissing the ground.

I flopped down on my bed after a full day of training. Mizu instantly crawled onto my back to curl into a ball. I was saddened at the fact that he has gotten bigger but I couldn't deny that he was still a beautiful cat. It was a little odd that he still hasn't shown any affection to the other guys but at least he didn't completely avoid them like when we first arrived. While I didn't want to ruin Mizu's relaxation, I didn't want to stay in these sweaty clothes. I slowly stood up and went off to shower and change into my pyjamas.

When I crawled into bed I could only embrace the wonderful relaxation and rest the sleep would give me. Five seconds later I rolled over, and again in another five seconds. I was staring up at the ceiling when I started to get that feeling again. It was the same feeling I had a few months ago. My body was screaming at me to fall asleep but my mind just wouldn't allow it. Fuck. I sat up and took a deep breath. From the corner of my eye I could see Mizu watching me from my desk chair. I sighed and flopped back down on my back. Not this again. I rolled onto my stomach and shut my eyes tightly. Go to sleep. Go to sleep. Go to sleep.

Mizu meowed from across the room and I looked over at him just in time to see him leave the room through the window. That gave me an idea. I got up and exchanged my shorts for a pair of sweats and put a cardigan over my tee. Since it was still summer the air was warm at night so I didn't bother putting on anything else. I poked my head out into the hallway and saw all the doors were closed. Not wanting to wake anyone up, I quietly walked past all the doors and headed outside. I took a deep breath of fresh air before I started walking. I wasn't sure where I was heading, I just started walking hoping it bring some kind of peace. But there was no such luck.

I wasn't sure how long I had been walking until I came across a little lake. Hmm, this might be a good thing. I walked up to the lake and sat down on my knees so I could watch the water ripple. Since my water demon side has played more of a role in my life, I've always found water to be super relaxing. As I watched the waters movement, I reached forward and dipped one of my fingers inside the water and started to make circular moments. Using my other hand, I pulled up the sleeve of my cardigan to look at the bracelet. Wondering if they contained my powers completely, I decided to test it out.

I began to speed up the circular movements as I started to lift my finger. The water began to rise with my finger and I couldn't help but smile. I guess I can control water a little bit. I pulled out a little more water so I could make a small water ball. After letting it float in the palm of my hand for a couple seconds, I placed my other hand over the water ball and when I pulled it back the water transformed into the form of a rose. This time my smile grew into a little giggle. My favourite flower.

The next thing I knew a burning pain went through my opposite hand. I gasped in pain as I lost control of the water. It didn't look like there was anything wrong with it but the pain was undeniable. It felt like my hand was literally on fire. I held my burning hand in my other as I tried to find a way to cool it down. I threw my hand into the lake only to have the water start to boil and steam up. "What the hell?" I said as I pulled my hand back. Something like this has never happened before but it almost felt like my fire demon side was trying to set itself free. The pain showed so sign of going away and it felt like the only thing I could do was rock back and forth. I let out a little cry as I tried to think of a way to get rid of the pain.

All of a sudden I heard something drop behind me. I quickly snapped my head around only to see Hiei standing there. That only made me groan. I didn't think I could handle his attitude when I'm feeling like this. "Please, Hiei," I groaned. "Not right now. Go away."

He only narrowed his eyes at me a second before forming some kind of black fire ball in his hand. Without warning he threw it at me. I squeaked as I raised my right, burning, hand to protect my face. Nothing happened, which only made me freeze for a couple seconds. Then I noticed that the burning in my hand was gone. I opened my eyes and got a better look at my hand. I gasped when I saw the fire dancing all over my hand. Shocked, I looked up at Hiei to see him watching the fire in my hand.

"I don't understand... How did you know to try that?" I asked him.

Hiei only turned his back at me. "You shouldn't be out at this hour."

I couldn't help but smile a little at his comment. After watching the fire for a couple more seconds, I brought my hand up to my face and blew. The fire danced away before it disappeared. "Sorry," I heard myself say. "I couldn't sleep." There was a pause. "I'll head back now." I stood up and started to walk past Hiei and towards the house. When I was a few steps ahead of him, I stopped and turned my face around. "I could use some company, if you don't mind." To my surprise, he walked up to me and waited until I started walking as well. We walked in silence for a couple seconds before I decided to fill the silence. "Thank you by the way." I forced myself to stare ahead when I felt Hiei looking over at me. "For all the patience and training. And for the hand thing." Another pause. "I know my defensive skills aren't improving as fast as everything else but I swear I am trying my hardest. I just think I need to find some kind of... motivation or something to help me stay focused." There was another pause which only made me sigh in defeat.

"You have improved a lot, anyone can see that. I'm sure you'll figure it out."

Surprised, I looked over at Hiei with a smile. "Thank you." He looked over at me, and we locked eyes. I stopped walking when I felt like there was more to him than the snarly attitude. After the few weeks that we've been training together I could tell that he didn't hate me or anything, but I didn't expect him to open show some kind of compassion. I could feel my cheeks redden and a second later Hiei disappeared. I turned in a full circle trying to see where he went off to, and then I saw that we had made it to the house. With a sigh of defeat, I made my way back to my room.

I flopped onto my bed, and was awake just long enough to feel Mizu crawl onto my back to fall asleep as well. The first thing I did when I woke the next morning was to check the time. Hmm, two hours. Better than nothing anyways. So it's one in the morning. What can a girl do around here at one in the morning? I looked over at one of my bags and wondered if I brought my kobo. Trying to avoid kicking Mizu, who had moved down to my feet, I went over to my bag and found it. I sighed with relief, now I had something to do for a few hours.

Hiei watched Aly-Jay walk up to her room after a long day of training. He couldn't deny the fact that she has been working as hard as she could. Every morning he saw her drag herself out of bed, exhausted or sore, and yet she never complained. Being half human, she wasn't as bad as he thought she would be. That and he couldn't help but be curious about her mixed heritage. The energy he felt when Genkai took off her bracelets was extraordinary. Nothing compared to the lack of energy he felt now. It was like she was completely human.

As everyone else headed off to bed, he figured he might as well such his eyes for a bit, even though he wasn't really tired. He lied on his bed, on his back, and shut his eyes. It couldn't have been more than ten seconds before he heard Aly-Jay getting up. She seemed so exhausted when she went to bed that it didn't make any sense for her to be up. But Hiei only shrugged it off before shutting his eyes again. If he had to deal with her moving around all night he was not looking forward to having a room next to hers. He opened his eyes again when he heard Aly-Jay open her door a few seconds before she started to head downstairs.

What was she up to? Curious, he opened his window just as Aly-Jay started to walk away from the house. Wanting to know what she was doing, he opened his window intending to jump to the nearest tree. That's when he came face-to-face with Mizu. They both just watched each other with the same calculating stare. Mizu was the first to give in by letting out a soft meow before rubbing himself against the tree. Hiei waited until Mizu jumped down before following Aly-Jay through the trees. When she stopped at the lake, he watched as she dipped her finger in the water. She looked so at peace when playing with the water; exhausted, but at peace.

Hiei's eyes widened when Aly-Jay created a water ball in the palm of her hand. Even with the bracelets on she was able to command water. Maybe she's more powerful than he thought. This only caused his curious to grow. Maybe helping her command fire will would more beneficial for himself. Aly-Jay's soft giggle brought his attention back to her. He narrowed his eyes at her when a weird feeling went through his veins. Before he could think about it too much, he heard Aly-Jay let out a painful gasp. He watched as she cradled one of her hands in the other. Suddenly he felt some kind of energy coming from Aly-Jay. It was faint, but undeniably some kind of fire demon energy. He was right, she was more powerful than he thought.

When Aly-Jay let out a cry in pain, Hiei surprised himself by actually feeling like he wanted to get rid of her pain. Hmm, if it's actually her fire side that he felt than maybe... He jumped down and made sure he made some kind of sound when he landed behind her. Trying to hide his surprise over the fact that she asked him to leave rather than receive his help, he narrowed his eyes before quickly calling upon the mortal flame to throw at her. Hmm, he was right. Her fire side just wanted some kind of release.

He surprised himself again when he found himself walking with her towards the house. It looks like the time he spend training with her caused him to gain a little respect her. While listening to Aly-Jay ramble, he realized that she didn't really believe in herself. He didn't like her lack of confidence. It's pathetic really, her human side was too much for him. He fully intended on letting her know of her weaknesses but when he started to talk he realized that he was comforting her. Unable to resist looking at her when he could feel her watching him. He could see past that gentle stare of hers and saw that there was a lot of strength and determination. When he realized that he was staring he quickly jumped back up into the trees.

(Surprise! Early post! I normally don't like leaving messages in a chapter-because I feel like they take away the charm, feeling, escape, etc. from the story itself-but I just wanted you guys to know that I'll be trying to keep you guys up to date on what's going on with me and the story through my profile. So, if you don't already check that out when I post a new chapter, I would like it if you guys did. Just to be kept up to date. You don't have to! I just wanted you guys to be aware that I will be doing that. Also, I'm keeping my fingers crossed so this wont happen again. Happy Reading!)