Just a quick thank you to those of you who commented and made my day! I'll continue to write this story so long as you continue to enjoy it!

DISCLAMER; I DO NOT OWN KAZE NO STIGMA!

Without further ado this is…

Chapter 2 of; 'Fear'

Safe Haven

Kazuma stared at the girl slumped numbly against his shoulder.

The subtle rise and fall of her chest was proof that she was fast asleep, and had been for the past hour.

He could vaguely feel her breath fanning against his neck, each breath sending shivers down his spine.

All of course, against his will.

The compound was no more than two hours from Hokkoda. From there a thirty minute hike up the steep mountains would bring them to the safe house and the area in question.

He had called ahead only minutes ago, gathering fragments of information regarding their current case. From what the Kannagies had said, he had no doubt in his mind that it was indeed a Yoma's doing.

But they had mentioned something… peculiar, for lack of a better word.

They had mentioned a trail of dead animals whenever and wherever it was spotted and an inhumane screech that would erupt several times a day from the beast. They said that it didn't sound like that of a Yoma…. But not exactly human either.

Kazuma sighed dragging his eyes away from the redhead to the shops that littered the streets. They had reached a small village of sorts called Iōdake. He remembered visiting it several years ago on a job, the first freelance job he had ever been hired for.

From here there was approximately an hour and thirteen minutes remaining.

Ayano shifted against him, hands balled into fists that she was pressing into his side. It wasn't painful but not exactly comfortable considering they had quite the trip ahead of them. He moved against her moving her hands to her sides mentally noting just how small they were in his much larger ones.

He looked at the girl curled into his side, she looked so at ease.

So serene…

So beautiful.

But he couldn't allow himself to feel that way.

Not yet.

Not ever.

He rested his head against the glass of the window watching the dull shops pass and he couldn't help but reminisce about better days.

Days that now felt like an eternity ago.

Days he spent in the warmth of a home and love.

Days he spent with 'her'.

His eyes scanned the shops stopping at what looked to be a bakery, figuring quickly that the girl would enjoy the snack once she woke up and that he needed a coffee he turned to the driver, "Pull over."

…

Ayano stared at the younger version of herself.

Watching as she summoned the flame again and again and again. She watched as Jugo and Genma critiqued each move, each form and each breath she took.

She watched as Genma stood abruptly tossing the girl a look before muttering something about her being a disappointment to the clan.

The younger girl glared at the man's back, obliterating the flaming blade.

"At least I can use flames unlike 'him'…"

The words weren't supposed to be harmful, just words thrown out in a fit of anger.

She watched as the older man stopped and straightened out before turning and glaring at the younger girl, "Don't speak of that child. He isn't mine."

Anger filled her being.

Even now, simply watching the interaction, the words stung more than she could describe.

How is it that someone could throw out their own flesh and blood based on power, or that lack thereof?

Was he embarrassed that his son was meant for something else?

Was he ashamed of Kazuma?

It disgusted her.

Ayano watched as the man left before turning her eyes to the younger version of herself, "I'm sorry father."

Jugo shook his head, "You need to learn to hold your tongue. Just because it's the truth doesn't mean it needs to be said."

She bowed deeply at her father, "I apologize."

"That'll be enough for today. You're dismissed."

"Father."

The younger girl turned to the staircase opening the iron door before breathing in air rather than smoke.

She'd never tell anyone that the scent of ash bothered her. She was after all a fire user, it wasn't supposed to.

She'd never tell them how refreshed she felt when she breathed in the fresh air that surrounded the compound. The way she relished it and the feel of it against her skin.

No she'd never dream of it.

…

"…Kazuma…"

Kazuma looked down watching the redhead, taking a sip of his lukewarm coffee. She sat up rubbing her eyes with the base of her palm, "What time is it?"

"Five. Enjoy your nap?"

She shook her head, "Not at all. How much time is left?"

"A little under an hour."

Nodding she slid back into her seat accepting the coffee and pastry he handed her, "Any intel."

He sighed running a hand though his hair, "That's where it gets tricky. It's a Yoma, supposedly, but it's not behaving like one normally would."

She raised a brow, "What do you mean?"

"It's absorbing energy at an incredibly fast pace, its killing animals and sucking their energy. Not to mention something about some sort of screech several times a day. "

"You think it's trying to heal something…?"

He nodded, "Exactly."

"But say hypothetically if it wasn't a Yoma, what else could it be?"

"No clue."

She sighed, "You're useless."

He chuckled beside her.

…

Ren walked into the main room bowing, "Uncle."

Jugo set down the cup of tea he had been sipping out of slowly before turning to the blond child, "Yes Ren?"

"Where are Ayano and Kazuma?"

Jugo waved a hand dismissively, "I set them to mount Hokkoda on a case. They should be back within a few days."

Ren smiled at his uncle, "Well that's good, they had been complaining of the lack of jobs.

"They needed some time to adjust."

"Yes. Uncle?"

"Yes?"

"I'm worried. "

Jugo raised a brow, "About?"

"Ayano."

"Why?"

Ren sighed, "I got a letter… he's coming back."

Jugo's eyes narrowed, "Why…?"

…

Throwing on a coat the fire user wormed her way out of the car taking the hand Kazuma held out for her.

Wrapping her scarf around her neck she scoped the landscape surrounding them. For what seemed like miles laid nothing but white untouched snow. The whiteness was beautiful against the setting sun, its radiance reflecting on the whiteness. Even now flakes were falling down slowly making the already picturesque view even more stunning.

"What now?"

He pointed towards the peak, "Thirty minutes that way. We'll need to hurry though… there's supposed to be some serious weather coming our way. Not to mention it gets dark soon…"

"Right, let's go." Throwing her backpack on she trudging shins deep into pale white snow.

Silence.

Aside from the sounds of their legs plunging in and out of the snow neither of the two spoke. It was something that they were used to, if it weren't screaming it was silence.

But it wasn't awkward, in fact the exact opposite.

Ayano dug her hands further into her pockets protecting her warmth from the raging cold.

She wasn't sure how long it had been exactly.

Her legs were on fire, her feet cramping under the bitter cold. The sun was setting and the snow was coming down faster than either of them had expected. She had stopped seeing anything in front of her, the snow blinding her vision and the wind stinging her eyes painfully.

And then she heard it.

A voice.

Murmurs.

Then silence.

"KAZUMA!" She shouted over the raging wind waiting for the man who was far ahead of her to hear her calls.

He turned looking back at her, "WHATS WRONG?"

She shook her head, "I THINK I HEAR SOMETHING!"

He walked towards her against the current of the wind winding her arm in his before continuing, "Let's just keep going. It'll get dark soon."

The redhead couldn't help the blush staining her cheeks lightly. Whether it was due to the cold or their close proximity she wasn't sure. "Are we going in the right direction?"

He nodded, "Yeah." Pulling his scarf over his mouth he trudged on dragging the red head along with him.

It was then that she realized just how white everything thing was. The flakes completely blurred her vision and the ground seemed like a never ending white canvas.

Her inner flame kept her warm enough but even through that she could still feel the bitter hands of the cold invading. She shivered half aware of the body that pulled her closer.

Kazuma swore under his breath looking around, "We should be there any minute now…"

She nodded pulling the backpack closer to her body as the wind seemed to pick up completely obscuring her vision.

She looked up at Kazuma who had stopped suddenly. She could see amber eyes scoping the area looking for something, anything.

"Can't you just use your wind!?" she called against the harsh gales.

He shook his head, "We're way too high up. If I tried anything we could be in even bigger trouble."

"Do you sense anything?"

He nodded, "Something…. Strange."

"See… I told you I heard something!"

Kazuma pulled the girl all but running, "We need to find the safe house now."

She nodded following him noting the tightening of his grip on her arm as he pulled her down the narrow path.

The snow was making it difficult to move much less see. The snow was accumulating far too quickly, what once was shin deep was now knee-high and very uncomfortable. She felt his hand grab at her waist pulling her even faster along.

He was using his wind, she could feel it but it was weak enough so that it would cause disturbances of any sort.

After what felt like an eternity Kazuma began to slow down feeling the effects of the snow. His limbs cried out in pain, his vision blurring, a cold sweat working its way down his back.

"Kazuma…"

The man didn't respond just slowed down hardly pulling the girl at all. She squeezed his hand pulling him behind her, "Come one… we need to keep going." Trudging ahead of him the princess pulling the contractor behind her.

The wind picked up against them, and it took all that Ayano had to not completely crumple to the ground. Instead she took a breath focusing on the mission. As if hearing her call, she began to see what looked like a building in the distance.

"Kazuma…. I think I see it!" Pulling him closer the girl trudged on with newfound energy towards the building.

It took her only a few minutes before arriving, groping blindly she finally found knob placing her hand against the stone she focused on her breathing before sending out a pulse of energy. After a few seconds the door popped open welcoming the two into its warmth. Discarding her bag she threw the contractor into the warmth hulling him onto the couch in the main room.

"Come on Kazuma..."

She sighed running into the bedrooms and grabbing all the blankets she could carry. Quickly stripping him of all his soaked clothing she laid him down under several thick quilts. The contractor glared at the red head, "What are you doing?"

"Keeping you alive."

…

Hey everyone and thanks for reading the second chapter of Fear!

Comments:

Blueraven7227- Hey there LUNA! So glad you enjoyed the story and I'm glad I'm finally writing one that you can enjoy! Any fandoms you'd want to see me write? It's a continuation of the anime! Enjoy

Aipom4- Thank you very much!

Boogle- My god… thank you so much! I was hoping it would seem real and not fake like a lot of the stories I read on the site. Half of them just don't seem realistic and the chemistry between the two while is definitely there it's just way too much! I totally agree! Thank you so much and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Guest- HEY! Thanks so much for the beautiful review. I woke up to it and cannot thank you enough for the beautiful wakeup call! It was the best way to wake up. What are the other two, I'd really like to read them! I'm just glad that you're enjoying them and of course I'll update soon! Don't you worry your pretty little head about it ;)

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I'll see you guys soon for the next edition.

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See you soon!

Lucy