Chapter Two- Hormonal Impulses

The first hints of their hormone change occurred hours later. Yukina sat on the porch while Hiei was standing on the ground, practicing sword maneuvers. Hiei found that her female body was faster and figured it was because she was lighter. Her movements were smooth and sure but found herself losing interest in her practice. But, why? I haven't been practicing all that long and I can usually practice for hours. Is it…my female hormones?

Yukina felt bored as he watched Hiei practice. He found it curious as he loved watching Hiei move swiftly, the sword moving so quickly it was just flashes of light. But today, he didn't want to watch, he wanted to join in. He hopped off the porch and approached Hiei who had the sword pointed down. "Hiei?"

"I think my hormones are influencing me," she said as she looked at him. "I have no interest in practicing."

"I'm having similar thoughts. I'd rather practice than watch."

Hiei smiled in a way that lit up her face. She passed the sword to Yukina. "I could give you a lesson."

"I'd like that as I've never used a sword before."

"Trust me, when I'm done, you'll be able to fight with one anytime you want."

Yukina tried a smirk on as he held the sword up the way he had seen Hiei do it. Hiei looked his stance over before using her hands and feet to move Yukina's own. "Try this stance; it'll be harder for an opponent to push you back."

Yukina mimicked the pose. "There's a lot to coordinate when sword fighting," he muttered.

"Yes, but with practice, it becomes second nature."

Yukina practiced for an hour before stopping for the day. "Yukina," Hiei said as she sheathed her sword. "Could you…help me in preparing tea?"

"Sure, but it's not that hard." Yukina led his sister to the kitchen and spoke of how he usually made the tea. As was done with the sword training, Yukina did the instructing while Hiei handled the making and setting up.

"You're right. It's not that hard," Hiei commented as she set the cups on the tray before opening the cabinet where Yukina had said the tea was stored. She stared at the boxes of teabags and tins of tea leaves. "Whoa. There's so many of them."

"I like to try out different flavors," Yukina admitted. "Kazuma is kind enough to buy them and bring them here."

Of course he was, Hiei thought. She knew the teen was in love with her brother, but Yukina seemed oblivious to it. Someone should tell him and it's usually the sibling who speaks of it.

"Yukina, I'm not sure if you know this, but…Kuwabara loves you. He has for years."

"He loves me?" Yukina's cheeks went hot; a female reaction despite his current gender. "I…had no idea. I just thought he was that friendly with everyone."

"Well, it's not." Hiei selected a rosemary tea and put a bag in each cup and some extras on the side. She put the water into the teapot and then carried it all to where they had tea earlier. She poured the water into the cups and passed one to Yukina. They dipped the bags into the water to mix them before carefully sipping the tea. "Hmm," Hiei said. "This is good."

"Yes," Yukina agreed. "What was it again?"

"Rosemary."

"I'll make a note of that and then give Kazuma a list when he comes by next time."

Hiei nodded and took another sip to gather her thoughts. "Yukina, I would like some guidance on being female. I mean, my body feels a bit uncomfortable or it could by my clothes."

"My body feels uncomfortable too and the hormones are driving me crazy."

Hiei giggled a little. "Perhaps, that's the answer. We let our hormones guide us until we change back."

"Yes, that's the perfect answer. I was going to tend the flowers. There's this particular one that thrives on ice and it's due to get some."

"I'll tend to them. Just show me the one that needs ice."

Yukina guided Hiei to the garden and pointed out the special flower before leaving her to take care of them. He returned to their tea spot and saw Hiei's katana lying on the floor. He went over to it and picked it up. Hiei won't want to practice until she changes back. So, I could borrow it for the time being. He stepped outside, unsheathed the sword, and began to practice again.

Hiei smiled as she placed her hands around the flower. She recognized it as one she had seen in the village on that one and only time she had been there. This flower thrived in the bitterly cold winds and blizzard-like conditions. It wouldn't survive without an ice apparition to keep it cold. She slowly exhaled and willed her ice to come forth. A small, thin layer appeared and then sank under the soil to the roots. Another layer appeared and began to thicken. Soon, a blanket of thick ice surrounded the flower and the isolated patch around it. Hiei nodded in approval as she dusted off her hands. I did a good job there. It feels good using my ice powers. She moved on to the main garden to tend to the flowers there.

Yukina moved the sword the way he had seen Hiei do it when she did what she called warm-up exercises. They started off slow but gradually got faster until Hiei was a blur. Yukina didn't have the confidence to move that quickly, so he focused on his swings and stance. He stopped when he smelled food cooking and surmised that Hiei was cooking. It has to be her as we're the only two here. He sheathed the sword and headed in to have dinner with his sister and share their afternoon experiences with each other.

Hiei laid in the guest room that night, re-living her day. When she had finished the gardening, she had gathered up the tea tray, saw her sword missing, and suspected that Yukina had it. She looked out the door to see her brother working on swings and stances. She then decided to fix dinner as she knew sword practice works up an appetite. Yukina loved the dinner. It seems I have a talent for cooking, at least in my current form. I have to admit, I am getting comfortable being female, but I will be relieved when I change back. She sighed as she rolled onto her side and fell asleep.

Yukina felt sun on his face and blinked against it as he awoke. He sat up and as he stretched, he felt his shirt come untucked. He looked down and saw breasts, the reason for the untucked shirt clear. Yukina was female again!

If I'm female again, then that must mean that Hiei is male again. She rose from her futon and dressed in her kimono before heading down the hall to the guest room Hiei was using. She knocked on the door. "Hiei, are you awake?" She heard a grunt and smiled. "It's over, brother. We're back to normal." She heard Hiei moving around and approaching the door so she stepped back as it slid open. She blinked in surprise. Instead of a male Hiei before her, there was a female one!

"Wha-?"" she gasped. "You're still female?"

"Clearly," she said. "Perhaps, I'll change back tomorrow."

Yukina shook her head. "Twins change for the same amount of time. It is rare to have twins but there is precedence."

"Then, why am I still female?" Hiei asked, confused.