Doumo, minna-san... ^_^;; Thanks to everybody who has written to me after I
posted the first three chapters of 'Dreams'. Thank you. =)
I was listening to 'Dark Side Stories' and 'Wild Wind' while I wrote this
chapter... ^_^; I think they will have some impact on this chapter
somehow... I admit I was even comtemplating to make Yusuke sing the twisted
version of 'Kokoro o Tsunaide' in that banquet but somehow I didn't have
the heart to do it anyway for the sake of Yusuke fans. ^_^;
Anyway, comments are greatly appreciated and I promise you guys that I'll
give this fanfic a suitable ending. =)
P/S All previous chapters and the two previous stories are posted up on my
page:
YYH fanfics: http://members.xoom.com/hiei/yyh.htm
PPF direct link: http://members.xoom.com/hiei/ppf.htm
Siew Lee
[wsiewlee@tm.net.my]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
~~~The Past, The Present And The Future~~~
~~~The Future - Dreams~~~
Chapter 4 - Blissful Days
---------------------------------------------------------------------
The doorknob turned slowly and a female figure stumbled into
the apartment, her hand holding a can of beer. She gave a few hiccups
and flopped down on the floor dizzily.
Closing her eyes, she began to sleep... Wait, she couldn't
sleep yet. There were voices interrupting the silence she was looking
for.
Two voices.
Her head was throbbing when she crawled along the living room
floor before making a turn by the corner to investigate those sounds.
They seemed to be coming for her son's room. Her son's room? Yusuke
seldom had friends coming over so there was hardly any noise in the
apartment. She shook her head a few times and knocked it once with
her hand.
Her focus was blurry and she couldn't really see what was in
front of her. Everything seemed to have double outlines to her eyes.
Using her hands, she made her way to Yusuke's room. With a slight
shove, she expected the door to swing open as her son seldom slept
with his room door shut. They were not rich, so they usually rested
with the ceiling fan whirling during summertime. Even then, they had
to open all the windows and the doors to get proper air circulation.
She leaned against the wall as she placed the empty can on the
floor softly. The east-coast of China was having a heavy monsoon rain
season now and her traveling agency had to cancel most of their
plans, but at least with a full refund. The night before with her ex-
husband was totally great. Yes, she agreed with him - meeting once a
month was better than seeing each other every day. Maybe it raised a
sense of mystery between them, and stopped them from forgetting the
excitement they had forged between them.
There was a girl's voice in that room. What?! A girl? And it
sounded awfully familiar to her ears. *Where have I heard this voice
before?* thought the drunk woman. Atsuko immediately perked up her
head and tentatively pressed her left ear against the wood. What the
heck was her son doing inside? Another moan came echoing through door
and she recognized that as her son's voice.
There was an assortment of sounds and noises after that.
*Haggard breathing... whispers... half screams...* Atsuko listed
mentally and sat up straight. *Keiko Yukimura...* was Atsuko's first
thought.
Atsuko smiled to herself and stood up again, this time
staggering into her room, the one opposite her son's. Softly, she let
out a sigh.
*Yusuke is all grown up now, not the little boy I used to care
for...*
Unconsciously, a tear rolled down from her left eye, wetting
the pillow beneath her head. Atsuko sighed again, forcing herself
into the Land of Dreams.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
"Hey, Yusuke! Wake up!" whispered a female voice fiercely and
gave the young man beside her a little shove. She took a careless
glance at his alarm clock but her eyes widened when she realized that
it was already late in the afternoon. *Oh no... I'm going to turn up
late at Reikai...*
"What is it?" yawned Yusuke and stretched. His eyes were still
half-closed and he peered at Keiko's face. Careful not to crush her
with his body weight, he rolled over to pin Keiko beneath him and
gave her a gentle peck on her cheek. "What is it?"
"We are already late for the cooking in Reikai..." sighed Keiko
softly and turned her head to the side, avoiding Yusuke's gaze. They
had overslept since their passionate lovemaking had sapped most of
their energy. Well, their sleeping had taken up most of the day.
"Who cares about Reikai? They have tons of ferrygirls and onis
to cook for them..." Yusuke smiled lovingly at her. Keiko pulled the
blanket up to her chin, still shy with Yusuke's gaze. He leaned back
again but he remained facing her.
"Keiko, marry me..." whispered Yusuke into her ear and watched
her giggle. "Marry me..."
"Aren't we doing this in the wrong order?" teased Keiko and
embraced him tightly, feeling his well-formed muscles on her bare
skin. "Honestly, we should wait, you know."
"We'll just go to the marriage department to register tomorrow,
alright? We'll go and tell our parents sometime later today after
that banquet," suggested Yusuke before giving her another kiss on her
forehead. "Besides, everyone knows how close we are to each other..."
"Fine with me. Hey! Atsuko-san's coming back in a few hour's
time, right?" asked Keiko suddenly, and got off the bed. "We better
get cleaned up before she suspects anything," She wrapped the woolen
blanket around her expertly and studied her yellow blouse hanging by
the bedpost. "So violent of you," muttered Keiko as she began
searching for the ripped-off buttons on the floor.
Yusuke sighed and pulled up his pants too. "Kaasan is usually
so drunk that she won't notice anything. You first?" asked Yusuke and
dragged open the door. He peeped outside and saw the closed door
opposite his room.
"Keiko! Keiko! Kaasan is already back and we didn't realize
anything!" whispered Yusuke, drawing surprised looks from the girl.
"What?! Atsuko-san's already back?!" whispered the girl back
worriedly and peered through the crack.
"Go! Quickly! Clean up and we'll get to Reikai..." hurried
Yusuke and opened the door wide enough to let Keiko pass through.
"Chotto," called back Yusuke and pulled open his wardrobe. With a
flick of his hand, he threw a clean towel, a T-shirt and a pair of
shorts to the girl. Keiko caught them deftly and walked out of the
room. "Wear these first and you can get something else from Misuko-
san in Reikai since both of you are about the same size. Besides, you
are going to be one of Misuko-san's escorts, right?"
Keiko replied with a simply 'yes' and the soft click of the
bathroom door sounded shortly after that. Yusuke sighed again. It was
like a dream since this morning... It had been so many years now
since he had been thinking of marrying Keiko, the only girl he loved
since childhood.
It was becoming a reality now.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
A ring echoed through the house, instantly alerting a boy
sitting by his study desk. At first, he waited for his mother to
answer the door.
The doorbell rang a few times again and Kurama looked up in
confusion. Today was Sunday but he didn't have time to rest from all
that schoolwork. Sayuri was sleeping peacefully, thank the gods and
Hiei was brooding by himself on the windowsill, patiently waiting for
him to finish before going to Reikai for the banquet. He sighed as
the high-pitched bell sounded again. *Kaasan must be busy now,*
thought Kurama and twirled his mechanical pencil with his fingers.
Almost reluctant to leave his work, he got up and walked
down the stairs, heading for the door. Peeping through the tiny hole
on the upper half of the door, he looked out. A middle-aged woman was
standing there, her left hand clutching her handbag tightly and her
eyes were looking left and right anxiously. In the background, a
white Toyota car was parked at his front gate. *Arisa's kaasan,*
whispered Kurama mentally. He bit his lower lip painfully and closed
his eyes.
Just as she was about to press the doorbell again, Kurama
unlatched the wooden door and pulled open the metal grill.
"Konnichiwa, Kino-san," greeted Kurama politely and stood sideways to
let the plump woman get inside his house. He waited for her to walk
in before closing the door behind him.
"Konnichiwa, Shuichi," greeted the woman back. Once she stepped
into the small space, she glanced around, looking for Sayuri.
"Where's Sayuri-chan?" asked Mrs. Kino worriedly and placed the small
plastic bag that she was carrying on the living room table. She came
here quite often just to look at Arisa's daughter.
"Sayuri-chan's sleeping... Do you want to see her?" asked
Kurama softly. Slowly, he walked up the stairs again and went into
his room to carry his daughter out for Mrs. Kino to hold. He noticed
someone missing - Hiei. Kurama sighed softly, he always disappeared
into the thin air whenever there were visitors, especially Mrs. Kino.
His eyes met briefly with a medium sized drawing of a vixen hanging
on the wall above the crib. The thick paper flipped a little with the
soft breeze which blew into his room. *Arisa...* It was a picture of
youko Arisa that he had drawn sometime ago and no-one dared to touch
it, not even Shiori. Her eyes and face were looking so serenely at
him and he unconsciously nodded once at her. Holding Sayuri close to
him, he hurried down the stairs.
"Thank you, Shuichi," said Mrs. Kino and sat down beside the
low wooden table in the room. Kurama glanced around for Shiori but he
could hear her singing softly by herself in the kitchen. She
obviously didn't know there was a visitor in the house. Kurama
politely took leave to inform Shiori and moments later, she came out
personally to serve Mrs. Kino some drinks and a plate of snacks.
*Typical Japanese courtesy...* Mrs. Kino thanked Shiori briefly and
took the small cup of tea thankfully.
"Here you are," smiled Kurama as he handed over the baby to the
woman for a brief hug. "Shuichi, here are some fruits for you and a
few toys for Sayuri-chan..." trailed off Mrs. Kino in a choked voice.
Kurama could see that tears were already starting to brim in her eyes
when she looked at Sayuri lovingly. Sayuri was her only grandchild,
the only thing that Arisa left behind.
"Doumo..." said Kurama and waited for a while. "How's Mr.
Kino?" asked Kurama softly once Shiori was out of earshot. He didn't
want Shiori to know about the cracked relationship between Arisa and
her father. Arisa had still been upset when she moved into his room a
few months ago and she had cried nearly every night. It had hurt him
to watch tears rolling down her cheeks.
"He still can't get over Arisa's death. It was so fast, that
asthma attack... I knew she had respiratory problems since she was
young," answered Mrs. Kino and sniffed. Digging into her handbag, she
retrieved a small packet of tissues and dabbed away her tears. Arisa
was her only child and she had died so soon. "He is so stubborn and
he thinks that Arisa had disgraced him. Although he says that he
doesn't care about Arisa's existence but I know that he is very sad
deep inside..."
"Arisa isn't dead yet... She is living at a faraway place... So
faraway that I can't even reach..." mumbled Kurama unconsciously.
*No, Arisa isn't dead, she is just gone. She is still living
somewhere out there...*
"Arisa-chan..." wept the poor woman and hugged the sleeping
child even tighter. Kurama sighed a little. He couldn't help feeling
guilty when he stood in front of Arisa's 'grave' during her funeral.
He knew that Arisa was safely with Inari-sama but still the sight of
seeing Mr. And Mrs. Kino's heartbroken expression was too much to
bear. It didn't even occur to her that Arisa wasn't exactly dead but
her lifeless human body was concrete proof to her parents and school
friends.
"Don't worry... I'll take proper care of Sayuri-chan..."
assured Kurama before taking Sayuri back into his arms.
"One more thing, don't tell anyone that I came here today.
Arisa's tousan still doesn't want to acknowledge Sayuri as his
granddaughter... He is so stubborn," said Mrs. Kino and clenched the
tissues in her fist.
"Don't worry, I won't tell a single soul," promised Kurama
before bidding farewell to the woman by the door. Kurama shut the
door again and sighed unhappily. Mrs. Kino always dropped by to see
Sayuri-chan but she dug out his memories too, bittersweet memories.
Slowly, he walked back to his room.
"Kurama," growled a deep voice, making Kurama look in its
direction. It was from the windowsill. Hiei was there again,
polishing his katana with a piece of cloth. The sharp blade reflected
the sunlight, creating flashes of light on the wall opposite the
window.
"Hiei, where were you just now?" asked Kurama as he placed
Sayuri back into her crib. Arisa had purposely chosen this movable
crib so that he could always take care of her whenever he was to
study in his room or the mini living room outside. *So considerate of
Arisa,* thought Kurama dejectedly and sat on the wooden table, facing
Hiei.
"I just don't want to meet anyone today," replied Hiei simply
and looked away.
Kurama smiled and took his fire demon by his waist. With his
arms tightening around him in an embrace, he asked gently, "You are
not jealous, aren't you?"
"Hn. Why should I be?" asked Hiei back and looked at the
redhead.
"Well, just asking because you look very broody," teased
Kurama and released him. "Alright, let's get going to Reikai. We have
a banquet there."
Hiei nodded once and watched Kurama swallow the Fruit of the
Past. A silver youko appeared before him in place of Shuichi
Minamino. The silver youko picked up his daughter from the crib and
hooked his arm around Hiei's limb. "Let's go to Makai first. I want
to change Sayuri-chan into youko form first. At least I don't need to
carry her around in Reikai."
"Hn. Stupid fox. Lazy fox."
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Beautiful music filled the air as neatly dressed waiters and
waitresses scurried around, handing all the guests glasses of
champagne. Kurama glanced at the huge hall full of guests and Sayuri
stood beside him, her chubby cheeks radiant from the joyous
atmosphere. No, she still didn't know to talk yet but her youko form
was already growing rapidly. Well, at least she could understand what
he was trying to tell her. Her height was about that of a five-year-
old Ningen child and she clutched Kurama's hand nervously.
Kurama adjusted his new white robe and sash and ran his fingers
quickly through his silver hair. Even Sayuri was dressed up in a
white flowing robe with red roses embroidered at her sash around her
waist. He was very sure that he wanted to look as presentable as
possible with that old Makai garb. Alright, at least he had his long-
sleeved robe on now and it made him look a lot more handsome. Even
Hiei was blushing just now, even he approved his new outfit. It was a
wonder Hiei could even admire him.
*Hm, all those Makai warlords are also here,* thought Kurama
silently. *Even those angels and fairies from heaven are not missing
from this once in a blue moon Reikai banquet.*
He looked around for Hiei with his liquid golden eyes. As
usual, Hiei was standing in a corner, fidgeting with his new tuxedo.
Not that he liked wearing it but as a Reikai tantei, he was
considered one of Koenma's personal bodyguards and he was to make
sure that he turned up in proper attire.
Kurama picked his daughter up easily and held her with his
arms. Wisps of her shoulder length hair tickled his nose and he swept
them aside before he felt a sneeze coming. There were locks of black
hair amongst her sliver hair and her eyes shone a pale golden shade.
"Sayuri-chan, tousan wants to go and meet tousan's friends, okay?"
asked Kurama gently and watched his daughter nodded a little.
Carefully, he began to make his way across to the front row where
those important guests were seated.
"Yo Urameshi!" hollered a loud voice, making Kurama glare in
that direction. A tall young man with hair in an ugly orange shade
was waving to someone right in front. *Kuwabara-kun,* thought Kurama
and continued walking. He narrowed his eyes and detected his friends
standing in a small group next to Koenma and all of them were
laughing merrily.
"Yo Kurama!" shouted Kuwabara and slapped a free hand on his
shoulder. Kurama acknowledged him with a slight nod. He didn't really
like talking a lot, especially in his youko form. Kuwabara also
understood that Kurama wasn't exactly the talkative type.
"Kurama!" greeted Yusuke when he reached the front. Tonight,
everyone was dressed up in their best attire. Yusuke adjusted his
black male kimono and the cloth belt around his waist. Koenma was
dressed in a elaborate white and red robe completed with butterfly
buttons and he looked dazed. He fidgeted with his high collar
uneasily and gulped. *Most probably having a serious bout of nerves,*
thought Kurama and smiled inwardly. *Of course, today's his big
day...*
"Where's Misuko-san?" asked Kurama curiously as he expected
Misuko to be standing nearby. After all, today was her big day as
well. *Oh yeah? Who doesn't like being crowned as the Junior Empress
at the age of 18 this year?* thought Kurama silently.
"Well, yesterday she was crying with her parents and today she
is somewhere inside the palace with Keiko and Yukina dressing her
up," answered Koenma and blushed. The whole group laughed and Yusuke
slapped a hand on Koenma's shoulder. "You deserved it. You waited for
her for nearly a century, Koenma-sama," teased Yusuke and laughed
even harder with his boss rolled his eyes.
"Kurama, do you know what to do during the ceremony?" asked
Koenma anxiously and took Kurama's arm. He had earlier asked Kurama
to come and meet him and he gave him detailed instructions.
"Yes, of course," smiled Kurama and produced a piece of cloth
written with lines after lines of sentences. "Don't worry, I'll read
the edict out loud and clear."
"Wait, that piece of cloth won't do... George reminded me to
write it again clearly on a formal scroll. Here, take this, it's
exactly the same," said Koenma and gave Kurama a yellow scroll. The
youko accepted it and held it in his right hand.
"Thank you, Kurama. Your youko form has the best voice here
next to Hiei's and he wouldn't do me this favor, that fire demon,"
complained Koenma and sighed a little. "Your daughter?" asked Koenma
and bent down to look at her. After all, she was Misuko's blood
relative. After tonight, she would be one of his numerous relatives.
*Hm, good. Kurama will be one of my in-laws and that makes things a
lot easier,* thought Koenma and smiled.
"Yes," answered Kurama softly.
"She looks a lot like Arisa in her youko form," sighed Koenma
and carefully placed her silver hair behind her ears. Her large
innocent eyes looked up at him and Koenma gasped a little. *I could
swear that it was Arisa looking at me,* thought Koenma in shock. *She
looks so much like Arisa, her face and the most of all, that light in
her eyes.*
"What's the matter, Koenma-sama?" asked Kurama quizzically, his
eyebrows knitting together in a frown.
"Oh, nothing. Nothing's wrong," smiled Koenma quickly as he
didn't want Kurama to be depressed throughout the entire night.
"One more thing, Keiko and I are getting married the end of
this month and you guys are invited to the wedding reception,"
announced Yusuke smugly and puffed out his chest.
"Hey! Congrats, man!" said Kuwabara and punched him playfully
on his chest.
"Yup, thanks to your 'Sukebe' magazines Keiko agreed to marry
me," retorted Yusuke but ended up laughing with the rest.
"What actually happened?" asked Kuwabara evilly and nudged
Yusuke slightly on his ribs. "What happened? Did she bash you up?"
"Well, nothing much. You wouldn't believe it anyway," answered
Yusuke loftily before the serene sound of a brass bell rang out
throughout the hall, drawing instant silence from the milling crowd.
Koenma quickly excused himself and walked up onto the stage.
Gracefully, he sat down on the right chair and his eyes gazed
directly at the unopened doors.
The ancient doors creaked opened and a group of ladies walked
in, leading the procession. All of them were carrying a red lantern.
Shortly after them, a lone figure walked in, flanked by two ladies
walking behind her. Keiko was leading Misuko while Yukina was holding
a platter of ornaments and tools. Misuko was dressed in a beautiful
red robe with a yellow phoenix sewn onto the back and the edges of
her sleeves, and the hem of the robe trailed along the floor. Her
head and face were covered with a large embroidered veil, hiding her
features from the curious onlookers. Koenma smiled contentedly at
Misuko as he waited for her to walk up in front of him.
The two rows of ladies stopped just in front of the stage and
aligned themselves neatly by the side of the red carpet. Misuko
stopped there also but she kneeled down politely and stayed there,
her hands placed in front of her. Yukina and Keiko bowed a little
with their hands on their laps and stood by the side also. Yukina
smiled at Kuwabara happily and the young man's heart skipped a few
beats at that smile. Keiko winked at Yusuke and he waved back a
little.
Koenma smiled a half-smile at Kurama and gestured for him to
read out the edict which he had prepared earlier. Kurama nodded and
walked up onto the stage after asking Yusuke and Kuwabara to look
after Sayuri for a while. Sayuri stood beside Yusuke and clutched his
leg, her bright eyes following her father. Yusuke patted her once on
her head and proceeded to watch the ceremony.
Kurama stood on the center of the stage and rolled open the
scroll. He waited for the audience to calm down and for once, the
huge auditorium was so quiet he was sure that he could even hear a
pin drop. Flipping his sleeves open, he could detect a few whispers
from those fairies at the bottom left side of the stage. He strained
his ears but they were whispering about *him*. Kurama shot a warning
look at them and they quickly shut their mouths.
In his deep voice, he began reading. "Today marks a milestone
for the Internal Reikai Palace since on this day is the ceremony of
crowning the prince, his highness, Koenma-sama. Today, we will
witness the coronation of the Imperial Reikai Junior Empress."
Taking another deep breath, he continued. "Let the ceremony
begin."
Keiko walked behind Misuko and knelt down. Yukina also stood
beside Keiko, extending the platter to the girl. The girl then lifted
the back of the veil to reveal Misuko's hair all done up in a
traditional style. Using her index finger, she undid one lock and
watched it cascade down her shoulders. She took a comb and ran it
through Misuko's hair thrice. Yukina looked at her platter and picked
up a pair of silver scissors. Keiko took hold of it and snipped away
two inches of hair from the lock. After that, she replaced the veil
and stood up again before standing back in her line.
"May the new Junior Empress now ascend," called out Kurama.
Misuko bowed a little and got up on her feet. Keiko rushed forward to
guide her and slowly, the duo walked up onto the stage. Misuko turned
around and sat down on the left chair gently. The whole room
applauded in loud cheers and Koenma was smiling so happily as he shot
a glance at the girl.
"From now onwards, the Junior Empress will be the highest ruler
of all ferry maidens and the internal affairs of the Reikai Imperial
Palace," announced Kurama and gave a small bow to Koenma before
retreating to the side. Misuko also got up evenly and with Keiko's
help, she walked towards the main door again.
"The banquet may start now," announced Kurama again and the
crowd clapped again. The once-silent hall was bustling with activity
again as Kurama walked down the short flight of stairs with Koenma.
"Alright, so simple," sighed Yusuke when the duo assembled with
the rest below the stage.
"It's Reikai's custom anyway and it has only been held twice so
far, including this time," answered Koenma and shrugged. "I don't
particularly enjoy this type of ceremonies either."
"Congratulations, Koenma!" said a sweet voice. Koenma turned
and stood face to face with a beautiful fairy. "Thank you, 7th
Fairy."
"Is your Empress beautiful?" asked the fairy teasingly.
Koenma merely smiled. "Let me introduce. 7th Fairy, this is
Yusuke, Kuwabara and Kurama - my Reikai tanteis. Yusuke, Kuwabara and
Kurama, this is the 7th Fairy from the Realms of Heaven."
"Or should you say that I'm your childhood sweetheart?" teased
the fairy. "Anyway, congratulations again."
Koenma blushed as the fairy kissed him on his cheek and took
leave, walking hand in hand with another god, namely his childhood
rival.
"Heh Koenma-sama! You won't be able to do that again next time.
Misuko-san would chop off your head," laughed Yusuke and stuck his
hands on his sides. Kuwabara loosened the bow-tie of his tuxedo and
sighed. "Yukina-san..." he sighed dreamily.
"Anyway, why did Keiko cut Misuko-san's hair? Two inches is a
lot," commented Yusuke and folded his arms across his chest.
"Well, according to the Reikai custom, the new Empress' hair
must be snipped away by two inches by a virgin," explained Koenma.
"It is to symbolize the cutting of the ties between Ningenkai and
herself."
"Did you tell Keiko about all these customs?" asked Yusuke
again, his hand gripping the sleeve of his robe. He felt a hollow pit
deep at the bottom of his stomach and he gulped uncomfortably.
"No, she need not know so I didn't tell all this to her,"
replied Koenma, raising one of his eyebrows in pure confusion. "I
assume that the two of you are proper enough and I don't think that
it is very polite to ask Keiko-san to her face like that."
"Uh oh..." mumbled Yusuke and a bead of cold sweat rolled down
his forehead. "Kuwabara, come over here," demanded Yusuke and took
his friend by the arm, dragging him to the side way out of Koenma's
earshot.
"Urameshi, what are you doing?! Why are your hands so clammy?!"
exclaimed Kuwabara as they came to a halt.
"She *was* a virgin, until today," stammered Yusuke and wiped
away the sweat on his skin with the sleeve of his robe. "I lost
control, she lost control, everything went out of control!" said
Yusuke and threw his hands up in the air.
"What?! Koenma-sama will kill you if he knows about this!" said
Kuwabara and shot a worried glance at his unsuspecting boss.
"How should I know about all this crap?! Yeah, thanks to your
'Sukebe's I'm stuck with this terrible mess," grumbled Yusuke and
gritted his teeth. Koenma would really freak out if he was to know
about all this.
"What about those magazines?! You also had your share at
reading it! Alright, Urameshi, take a deep breath and walk back
there. Just act as if nothing has happened," advised Kuwabara and
gave Yusuke a slap on his back.
Calmly, the duo walked back there.
"By the way, where's Sayuri-chan?" asked Kurama as he glanced
around for his daughter.
"Eh? She was standing beside me just now!" voiced out Yusuke in
confusion. He looked around him. Guests were milling around the long
buffet table stacked with food but there was no sign of the little
female youko.
"What the heck, Yusuke?!" half-shouted Kurama and began ducking
amongst the guests, trying to look for his daughter. "She is just a
four month-old youko and she wouldn't know how to ask her way
around!"
"Sorry, Kurama!" shouted back Yusuke and began looking for
Sayuri again. "Urameshi, you are one careless baby-sitter," commented
Kuwabara as he began looking for the girl.
"Kazuma-san!" shrieked a high-pitched voice and Kuwabara's head
jerked behind to see the blue head making her way towards him.
"Yukina-san!" hollered back Kuwabara but stopped when he
remembered that he was suppose to help Kurama locate Sayuri.
"Yukina-san! Gomen ne, Yukina-san. Sayuri-chan is gone!" said
Kuwabara, his hand holding her by her arm.
"Sayuri-chan? I saw her with my niisan just now!" exclaimed
Yukina, drawing the whole group's instant attention. "What? With
Hiei?" blurt out Yusuke and heaved a secret sigh of tremendous of
relief. At least Sayuri had someone to look after her for the
meantime. "Where?"
"There! Sitting on the stand of a stone lion outside the hall!"
said Yukina and the whole team made their way quickly to the huge
ancient doors. Outside, they saw a surprising sight.
"That shrimp..." mumbled Kuwabara and blinked his eyes. Sayuri
was actually playing with Hiei's bow-tie while the fire youkai
patiently sat down there, holding Sayuri close to him.
"Kurama, your brat," said Hiei as he realized that there were a
few pairs of eyes staring at him. "You should look after her more.
She was scared half the way to Makai just now. Luckily she came to
me. If she went running to some bad youkais, you would have to crack
your head trying raise the ransom in exchange for her."
"Doumo, Hiei," said Kurama. Sayuri immediately saw her father
standing there and her eyes flickered happily. Getting off Hiei's
lap, she ran towards the youko and hugged his leg. She hid her face
by pulling Kurama's trousers, not daring to look up at his face.
"Hn. See? I told you she was scared by all that crap going on
inside that hall," snickered Hiei and folded his arms.
"Hiei, since when did you became so overprotective of Sayuri-
chan?" teased Kurama and gave Hiei a small nudge with his elbow. Hiei
growled a reply and looked away, drawing bouts of laughter from the
entire group of his friends.
"Heheh! Hiei! The next time, bring her to the amusement park!"
smirked Kuwabara. Hiei rolled his eyes and got off the stone lion
loftily. *What's an amusement park anyway?* thought Hiei silently but
he didn't open his mouth to ask Kurama that question.
"C'mon! There is a lot of food inside and all of you will have
to help me clean up the mess in the hall before you all leave! I
don't want to be executed by Otousama after this banquet!" said
Koenma and gestured for all of them to enter.
Rolling his eyes again, Hiei followed the entire group back
into the hall before the ancient doors creaked shut again.
At last, the doors totally closed, leaving no space for any
evil to get through. Memories of the past and dreams of the future
trailed them, but at least they were untouched for the moment. As
time passed by, they faded more and more into the mist of happiness.
Here, another chapter of the adventures of the Urameshi team
ended - at least for the meantime.
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Copyright reserved 1999 W. Siew Lee
All standard Yu Yu Hakusho disclaimers apply to this fanfic.
E-mail: Siew Lee [wsiewlee@tm.net.my]
URL: http://members.xoom.com/hiei
UIN: #14025577
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