Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or the characters

Shizuru woke up to the small whimpers of Hiei. The fire demon had been at her apartment for a week now, and things were certainly strange. He had been a surprisingly good houseguest aside from the fact that he usually did whatever he wanted. He didn't leave a mess when he ate, didn't leave the wrappers from the ice cream sandwiches he seemed obsessed with lying around, and he didn't even leave his clothes lying around after he showered. That was a thing in it of itself. She had no idea if he had anymore clothes than that one outfit. Eventually, if he stayed any longer, she'd have to get him more clothes. She figured she buy some even if he decided to leave the next day.

Now he was sleeping in her bed like the last few nights, and unlike the previous nights he was nearly sobbing in his sleep and tossing slightly. "No," she heard him moan sleepily, "stop."

Part of her didn't want to wake him not knowing how he'd react to her seeing him in this state, but she also didn't want to see him in this state. Letting him experience the nightmare, which must have been a doozy for the infamous Hiei to call out in his sleep, was worse torture in her mind. Whatever this was about was paining him, and she was going to get him out of it.

"Hiei," she called gently making him stop his slight thrashing. "Hiei, wake up."

He felt her hand touching him and surprisingly didn't mind her stroking his hair. He had woken up as soon as she called his name. The demon had always been a light sleeper. Living on your own in demon world required him to be a light sleeper. He kept his eyes closed to avoid seeing the look of disgust she must have had on her face.

But she couldn't be that disgusted if she was doing something that was calming him. Hiei chanced it and opened his eyes. She flashed him a grin when he opened his eyes. "I'm not even going to ask what you were dreaming about," she told him, "but if it happens again and you actually want to talk about it, go for it."

"Hn," Hiei scoffed. "I don't talk nor will I talk about it. It was a stupid dream."

"Right," Shizuru agreed before lighting a cigarette.

Hiei began coughing when the smoke entered his lungs. "What is that?" he growled. "It's disgusting."

"It's relaxing," Shizuru defended. "I've smoked around you before."

"I was never close enough to taste that garbage," Hiei countered.

Shizuru responded by puffing out some smoke. "Fine, I'll avoid smoking around you as much as possible, deal?" Hiei snorted and crossed his arms. "After all we wouldn't want the mighty Hiei to cough from smoke inhalation, ironic him being a fire demon and all."

Hiei glared at her. "Fine, smoke that trash around me, but don't complain to me if something happens to you like lung cancer or whatever."

"Oh, so you do know about smoking?" Shizuru teased while nudging him with her foot. She decided to put out the partially smoked cigarette. "See, look, out. Anyways, try to get back to sleep. Like you said, whatever it was was just a dream. You're safe here."

Hiei felt that warm feeling he had felt any time she had done something nice for him. He had accepted that feeling would come to him in those instances. It wasn't an unpleasant feeling, but he still didn't know how to react to it. His answer to her statement was to lie down and attempt to go back to sleep, hoping he wouldn't be plagued by more images from his past.

Shizuru was up early the next morning, having to get up for work. She didn't mind leaving Hiei to be in her home alone. He had been all week and there wasn't an incident. It was honestly comforting to know that her living space was being guarded by a powerful demon. Any burglar would find they were messing with the wrong apartment the second they thought about breaking in.

Hiei entered the kitchen, stretching and yawning slightly as he wiped the remainder of sleep from his eyes. Shizuru just stared at him blinking. That had been the most laidback he had been since he had come, almost as if he was really making himself at home. "What's for breakfast?" he asked her, snapping her from her thoughts.

Shizuru smiled a bit and chuckled. "Nothing," she told him. "Microwave stuff. I'm running late to work."

"Hn, he responded. "You got up too late."

Shizuru wasn't even going to counter that she was up late because of his nightmare. Instead, she decided to make an offer. "Want to go to work with me?" Hiei looked at her without any expression when she asked. "I was thinking of getting something quick on the way there."

Hiei was shocked. Well, no, not shocked…but awed. First this woman had opened her home to him, and now she was offering him access to another faction of her life. The only other woman to do that for him was Mukuro, and her reasons were more because she wanted him to be her heir. Shizuru got nothing out of having him around.

"Why are you doing this?" he asked without thinking. "If it's because of last night-"

"Why would you think it's about last night?" Shizuru snapped back. "I was just offering so you didn't have to make yourself breakfast. If you don't want to come, you don't have to. I was trying to be nice."

And then Hiei felt a stabbing feeling, not quite the same as the one he felt when he told his sister that her brother was dead, but close. Kurama had mentioned this feeling to him before…guilt. Hiei assumed he could never feel that because there wasn't anyone he cared enough about to make him feel that emotion. That was until he met his sister and she put her trust in him, and now this woman who was going out of her way to make sure he felt like he had a home. He realized that this "home" was nothing more than an illusion, but it filled the sense of longing he had while residing in Demon World. Now he might have ruined it. He was waiting for her to respond negatively, but she spoke softer this time.

"Look, I'm going to be gone all day, and there's not much food in the house, so just come with me and we'll worry about meals out," she offered. "Hopefully I get enough in tips for us to make a trip to the store."

"Heh," Hiei laughed slightly, "I accuse you of having an ulterior motive and you offer me a day in your mundane world and meals. Makes total sense."

"Hiei," Shizuru sighed in exasperation, "I don't have time for this, but I'll tell you straight up. I'm not Koenma, I'm not a demon. I have no ulterior motives. I know you've got it rough, and where I don't know specifics, I don't care. You needed a home; I offered it. You have to eat at some point today; I'm offering it. It may be mundane, but I like it that way. It beats having to watch your baby brother and his friends fight to the death to preserve everyone's life or psycho humans opening a tunnel to Demon World."

Hiei's expression hardened again as he looked at her angered expression. He never considered how she saw his world before, and all this time he had insulted hers. "Fair point," he replied monotonously using her words that she used to agree with his insults before. "I've never known any other way, so to me that is normal and this world is strange."

"I know you don't know any other way," Shizuru told him. "That's why I offered. I figured that's why you accepted my offer…to learn more about this world. You've always seemed fascinated with it."

"I have not," Hiei protested, a little too hastily. "Fine, if it will shut you up today than I will go with you to your pathetic work place."

Shizuru smirked when she saw him grab his cloak. It amused her that she had struck a nerve with him. She hadn't even been trying. She just told it like it was from her point of view, and apparently it ran, at least a little bit, true. She could see it in his tense features and his look of abhorrence plastered on his face. She struck a nerve, and she didn't mind it too much, because it was again what Hiei needed to hear to sort through his own feelings.