Good evening, my dear readers. Here's the first chapter of Through True Eyes, the long promised sequel to Scarlet Eyes of the Kuruta Clan. If you're a new reader and haven't read Scarlet Eyes, fear not! You can read this story alone. This will deal more about Kurapika and Emina as a couple and less on fighting.

In short, BRING ON THE ROMANCE TRAIN!

Thank you everybody for reading my fanfictions. Sorry it took a while... a really really long while. I thank everybody who kept messaging me on continuing my story. Now here it is!

Disclaimers APPLY! I do not own Hunter X Hunter. I only own the plot and Emina.

As always, Happy READINGS!

Despite the bright lights of the city, the park was dim and quiet. The snow enveloped it beautifully, creating a picturesque scene fit for lovers. Underneath a solitary lantern, a couple stood facing each other. The girl had white hair, as white as the snow that fell softly around them. She clutched her scarf nervously as she fought the urge to run away.

"Kurapika," her lips trembled as she thought of what she was about to say. The young man turned and fixed his pitch black eyes at her. For a moment she wished he'd throw those contact lenses away. The darkness did not fit his golden hair.

"Yes, Emina-san?" his voice was as steady as ever. Emina hoped that he couldn't hear her heart pounding in her chest. She never felt this nervous before! She continued gazing at him as she gathered all her courage to speak these three words. It was now or never and she knew that if she didn't do it now, she will never have the guts to tell him again.

"I love you!"

Her voice never sounded as hopeful as it did right now. In a way, it made her embarrassed to sound like that. But what's done is done and there's nothing she can do to take back her words. She waited anxiously for a response.

Emina wasn't dumb. She knew beforehand of the possibility that he didn't share her feelings. But then again, after this past year, she thought that he definitely liked her back. They've shared precious moments together and they've been through tough times. Surely he felt the same as her.

And yet, the silence stretched on. Emina held her breath when she saw his expression change. A great pang in her chest warned her that his response wouldn't be what she wanted, but she disregarded it. She continued waiting.

Kurapika looked away for a moment. And after he took in a deep breath, he looked back at her with coldness in his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Emina-san," his voice was devoid of warmth and kindness. "But I only see you as a dear friend. I am not interested in 'love' right now. There is no room in my heart for that. I am deeply sorry but, I cannot accept your feelings."

And with a curt nod, Kurapika turned away from her and started to walk. Each of his steps was like a stab in her heart. Each minute of silence made everything sting even more. She willed herself to walk after him, but her feet remained rooted on the white snow.

A red blur came fluttering from the darkness and perched on Emina's shoulder. Turning her head slightly, she nuzzled her feathered companion and whispered, "So this is how it feels to be rejected…" The bird cooed softly and pecked her cheek consolingly.

"I know Kiara," she waited for the tears of heartache to come, but they never did. Maybe she'd cried enough tears already that she was physically incapable of crying anymore. Or maybe, just maybe, her heart and tears froze with the snow that dreary December night.

~0~

Emina woke up with tears that started to bloom in her eyes. "It was only a dream," she whispered as she wiped her eyes roughly with the blanket before the tears even fall. She slowly sat up and stared quietly at the wall. It really was a dream, but it wasn't only a dream. Ever since his rejection that fateful December night, Emina couldn't stop dreaming about the event. She still hasn't gotten over the fact that Kurapika did not consider her as a potential love interest at all.

"That's a major bummer," she grimaced at herself and sighed.

It's been a year ever since the grand auction at York Shin and it's been a few months since The Rejection. Evens so, the ache still felt raw in her chest and she didn't want to get up from bed. Today was the worst day to get out of bed. Not only did she feel sick, it was also her first day of school.

Now how did all her vigorous training boil down into taking a high school education? Well, it all started four months ago when Raito Nostrade's failing fortune could not be hidden anymore. His position in the underground business has been lagging because of Neon's inability to tell fortunes. That didn't include the sum of money spent on a pair of Scarlet Eyes bought in the auction. Due to all of these misfortunes, Nostrade was forced to the edge of desperation and announced a very important decision.

"We're moving to Japan," he said that day.

"Why, Daddy?" Neon looked at her father with her big innocent eyes. "Oh! Are we going on vacation?"

Nostrade looked at his daughter with determination and sadness in his eyes, "No, sweetheart. We're going there because I found a perfect suitor for you."

Emina remembered the silence and the tension that followed his words. She especially remembered Neon's face that was contorted with confusion. "Suitor? You're going to marry me off to some man that I don't know?"

A tantrum was about to unfold but before all hell broke loose, Nostrade quickly said, "Neon, sweetheart, we both knew this day would come. You know that Daddy only thinks of your wellbeing. We need to find you a proper husband to keep the family position and gain influence in our community. Please don't give me that look."

Neon glared daggers at him as he spoke his case. There was a loud discussion that ended with tears from Neon. After the hour long debate full of shouts and loud stomping of feet, she came to a stop.

"Fine! I'll agree to that arranged marriage," she screamed. "But on one condition."

"What is it, sweetheart?" Nostrade looked at his daughter's teary eyes. "Tell me and it shall be done."

"I get to have an entire year of freedom," Neon grinned when she saw the horror on her father's face. "I want to attend a regular high school in Japan and experience what the life of a regular teenage girl feels like. I want one year, Dad. And then I'll go marry that prick you speak of."

"But, Neon, you know you can't go to a normal school," Nostrade was sweating nervously. The thought of his daughter being out in the real world scared the lights out of him. "Why would you even dream of being with regular kids? You are important, darling. Plus, I'm your father and a lot of people want me dead!"

Neon giggled and wiped the remaining tears at the corners of her eyes, "That's why I'm not going to school alone!"

Emina remembered sneezing when she heard Neon say those words. She should have quit her job then and there. Sadly, she didn't and now she's in it for the long haul.

"Kurapika and Emina are gonna accompany me to school!" Neon cheerily hooked her arms with Kurapika who was standing near the window, and Emina who was sitting close by.

And that's how they ended up in this predicament.

It took about four months for Nostrade to agree with his daughter. But when he did, he did so halfheartedly. It was agreed upon that Neon will go to the local high school with Emina in her class. They arranged for Kurapika in the class too, but he's a bit older so he ended up on a grade higher. It didn't bother Neon because honestly, she wanted to have as close to a normal school life as possible.

All was going well on Neon's side of the bargain. Now the horrible part came from Nostrade. In Japan, the family had a mansion to live in. Surrounding that large vicinity are strategically placed houses meant for servants, employees, and guards. Emina and Kurapika were to live in one of those houses together as part of the façade. He said that even though they had a full proof undercover story, they still need to keep appearance just in case curious eyes decided to know more.

And now here she was, living under the same roof with the person that she wanted to stay away from the most. Emina sighed at the ridiculousness of it all. She did consider quitting the job. But no opportunity presented itself. Besides, working for Nostrade was perfect for her purpose. She still hasn't given up on looking for her sister, not to mention finding her father's scarlet eyes.

Sighing, Emina got up and got ready for school. She donned on the school's required uniform in front of the full length mirror and frowned at herself. Her skin looked too pale, her eyes were blue for now, and her hair was still white. She thought about dying her hair black some time ago, but it was faced with such great opposition from Kurapika that she decided against it.

She scoffed, "The heck should I care about his opinion, right Kiara?" she looked at the red bird perched on her windowsill. Kiara didn't make a sound so Emina moved on to her makeup. She did nothing extravagant, just eyeliner and mascara. She applied a light coat of lip gloss on and put on an ordinary black hairpin too keep her fringes out of her eyes.

She looked at herself again. This was as good as it gets. Maybe after the first day of torture, aka high school, she'll stop by the salon and get her hair done; maybe get a pair of colored contacts along the way, too.

"Have a good day, Kiara," she pet the bird's head lovingly. "Be a good girl okay? I'll see you around today," she winked and the bird chirped happily.

Emina picked up her black satchel and rushed out of her room. Immediately, she was greeted by the sweet aroma of fresh breakfast and her stomach rumbled loudly. Maybe living with him wouldn't be such a bad thing after all.

~0~

Kurapika didn't sleep well last night. So instead of moping around in his room, he got up early and prepared breakfast for him and his house mate. The truth is, Kurapika did not agree on Nostrade's living arrangement for him and Emina. Although he was an intellectual and a level headed person, Kurapika was still a man. And living with a beautiful unmarried woman under the same roof was testing his control.

For the longest time, his feelings for Emina had blossomed rather rapidly. It came to a point where he would kill anybody that hurt her. But still, he couldn't accept her love. Kurapika didn't have the time to love anybody. Right now, his only goal was to collect his clan's eyes and kill all the members of the Brigade. He didn't think that he could provide her the love that she deserved.

He was prepared to treat her as just a friend ever since that cold December night. That notion had been working for the longest time. But thanks to Nostrade's stunt, it's a bit too hard to ignore her now.

"Good morning, Kurapika," her voice rang from the kitchen's doorway. Looking up from the pancakes he was cooking, Kurapika's eyes almost popped out of his eye sockets. There stood Emina in a high school uniform that complimented her figure pretty well. Her blazer hugged her torso modestly yet still reveals her womanly form. Her skirt wasn't too short or too long, just the perfect length for her. The man inside him tried to break lose, but Kurapika's manners won.

"Good morning, Emina-san," he smiled and placed the pancakes on her plate. "Care for some breakfast?"

"Heck Yeah! I'm starving!" she sat on the table and started eating the pancakes. "Hmmm, I didn't know you could cook Kurapika."

"It's nothing special, all you have to do is follow the cook book," he answered. With that Emina laughed. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing, it's just" she chewed and swallowed her food before she continued. "I forgot that you're Kurapika, and you're the world's biggest book worm, ever!"

She was teasing him, but it sounded very endearing coming from her. Kurapika chuckled as he fixed coffee for both of them.

"So what do you think about this 'mission'?" He sat on the chair opposite her and sipped his dark coffee. "Why do you think Nostrade suddenly came up with this idea?"

"What? The marriage or this house?"

"Both." He looked at the girl seriously. "It seems like a very rushed decision to get Neon married."

"I agree. But then again, he is struggling financially. So an arranged marriage always fixes that, right?" she took another bite of the pancake.

"Well, what could Nostrade offer though? It seems like a very one sided deal. If Neon married a man from a wealthy family, why would that family let their son marry Neon?"

"Beats me," she shrugged and sipped her coffee. "Maybe they think she still has her prophetic abilities?"

"That's possible. Because what else would Nostrade offer the other family," ideas started running through Kurapika's mind as he analyzed the whole situation.

"Well as long as we get our clan's eyes back, I'm up for anything," she had a forced smile on her face that Kurapika ignored.

"Yeah, you're right, Emina," with that they finished their breakfast in silence and prepared to go to school.

~0~

The limo came to pick them up at around 7:30. Despite wanting to experience "normal high school life", Neon refused to walk all the way down to school. Emina chuckled secretly but played along. The ride was uneventful. It consisted of Nostrade giving Neon his emergency contact information and all of the bodyguards' cellphone number. He also gave her a new phone with all the said bodyguards' numbers on speed dial. Of course, Kurapika and Emina was issued a phone too so that Nostrade could keep tabs on his daughter.

"Gosh, Dad, it's not like I'm leaving for an entire month!" Neon whined and pouted.

"Neon-sama, your father only wishes to protect you," Kurapika said calmly as they slowly pulled up at the school's gate.

"Yes, listen to Kurapikia, Neon," Nostrade gave his daughter a tender peck on the forehead. "Don't go off on your own. Always take Emina with you and tell Kurapika where you're going. And don't talk to strangers. Don't eat foo-"

"Dad! Please!" Neon blushed furiously. "I am not a seven-year-old. I can handle myself. C'mon, Emi-chan!" and with that, she pulled Emina out of the limousine and dragged her through the school courtyard.

Kurapika chuckled at the sight of the girls hurrying along. It's been a while since he's experienced such normalcy that it was refreshing. "Kurapika," Nostrade's voice was serious now. "I trust you with my daughter's life. Protect her with your own no matter what it takes."

Kurapika looked at Nostrade's eyes. He had never seen such love in anybody's eyes for as long as he lived. He heard that a father's love for his daughter was a beautiful thing. Daughters think that it was annoying and irritating. But in truth, it was one of the purest love that one could have.

"I'll protect her, Nostrade-sama," he gave him a curt nod and opened the car's door. He stepped out and followed the girls towards the school's door.

Kurapika studied his surroundings as he kept a steady pace. The school was pretty big. The courtyard was expansive. Upon entering the building, the inside was spacious and well kept. A few students lingered on the halls. He could feel their eyes curiously gazing at him as he walked past them. He spotted Neon and Emina turning to a corner towards the principal's office. But oddly enough, they stopped. Only the back of Neon's hair could be seen poking out from the other side of the wall.

"Hey, cuties," Kurapika heard a male's flirtatious voice. It was followed by a group of murmurs, all were male. "I've never seen your pretty faces around here. Are you new?"

Kurapika didn't waste time to reach the two girls. He was about to speak up and tell the young men to back off when he heard Emina speak.

"Please step away from us, if you know what's good for you."

"Oh! We have a feisty one here!" the glee in their voices was sickening to Kurapika.

"One more time, back off," Emina said with authority in her voice. Kurapika almost forgot who Emina was. Maybe the cute uniform made him think she was vulnerable, which she was not.

"Back off? Or what?" taunted the main guy.

"Or this," she smirked.

And that's all for now! Had fun reading it? Oh it will get better soon! I hope... Pls. review and tell me what you think! Thank you!