Curiosity Has Its Advantages Part 1
Whenever Koenma gives us a day off, we go off and do our own thing. Mine was getting away to the Human World and spending an afternoon in one of the many parks Yusuke's town had. I was relaxing in a tree when I saw something from the corner of my eye. A human girl of about 18 with black hair sat down under the tree and began sketching in a book. I moved to get a better view of what she was sketching, but ended up making the branch I was on creak. She looked up startled, then looked around.
"Hello? Someone there?"
I jumped down from the tree and the girl looked at me. She smiled and brushed hair out of her face.
"Oh, you scared me."
"Hn, I tend to do that."
"Come here often?"
"No."
"I do. Whenever it's a nice day outside like it is today, I sometimes come here to the park and bring my sketchbook."
She flipped through pages and showed me sketches of the playground equipment, the flowers and trees, and the occasional wildlife like birds and squirrels. She looked at her watch and stood up.
"Oh, I must be going. Well, have a good day."
Without another word, she walked toward the residential area of town. I got back to Koenma's mansion and sat on the windowseat like I usually did. Kurama walked in and smiled.
"Back so soon, Hiei?"
"Hn, not much to do. I'm used to training all the time, and not doing so bores me."
"The Human World bores you?"
"Not as much as it used to when I was on probation. Whenever I do go there, I go to the parks and hang out in a tree."
"Well, we all have our activities, I suppose. Oh, I almost forgot. Koenma allowed for us to have the next few days off. He feels we have been working too hard and wants us to enjoy time to ourselves."
"Hn, good to know."
The next day, I found myself again in the same park as before. This time, the girl I encountered was already underneath the same tree, sketchbook in hand. I walked closer and she saw me, smiling as she did so.
"Oh, hello again. I see the good weather brought you out, too."
"Hn."
"I hope I'm not being too forward, but can you do me a favor?"
"What is it, dare I ask?"
She giggled and opened her book to a new page.
"I was wondering if I might be able to sketch you. I've never sketched a person before, and you looked like a good enough subject."
"Why not? Don't have anything else to do."
"Great! Just get into a pose that's comfortable for you and I'll get started."
She turned to face me as I leaned against the tree, crossing my arms and looking the other way.
"Oh, that's perfect! This will look great once I'm finished!"
As she began sketching, I found myself growing curious about her. I wasn't sure if us meeting here was coincidence, but then I found myself not really caring. Her green eyes shone brightly as she sketched me, and I smirked at her enthusiasm. Usually that kind of thing in a human annoyed me, but not this one. She didn't have a single impure thought in her mind, and I found myself wanting to know what she was thinking. After an hour, she stood up and showed me the book. I was stunned to see she paid attention to every detail, even how my clothing looked when I was in that pose. I looked up at her and smirked.
"Hn, impressive. You paid attention to every single detail."
"Oh, thank goodness. I was afraid it wouldn't turn out well."
"It must have if the subject thinks so."
"Hm, good point. Oh, look at the time. I have to get home and fix myself supper."
She turned to walk away, but I stopped her.
"Hiei."
"Excuse me?"
"I'm telling you my name. It's Hiei."
"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm Yuka. Nice to see you again. Bye."
She closed the book and began walking to what I assumed was her home. I found my curiosity growing and decided to follow Yuka. Oddly enough, she lived next door to Kuwabara and Shizuru. She approached her front door and stopped to see Kuwabara coming toward his house.
"Hello, Kazuma."
"Oh! Hey, Yuka! What's up?"
"Nothing much. Just got some more sketching done."
"Cool. Hey, you busy later this evening? My friends are stopping by and I wanna introduce you to them."
"Oh, no problem. I'm just about to make dinner. Why don't I make it and bring it over. Say, 5ish?"
"No problem! See ya later, Yuka."
"Bye, Kazuma."
Later than evening, we all gathered in Kuwabara's living room waiting for Yuka to arrive. Yusuke smirked as he smelled Yuka's cooking next door.
"Man. Whatever she's cooking smells good."
"You don't know the half of it, Urameshi. You haven't lived until you tried her lasagna. It's awesome!"
Kurama chuckled and shook his head.
"I don't suppose that's what she's bringing over?"
"Uh, I don't know. She cooks so much I never have a clue what she makes when she visits. She always makes something different."
The doorbell rang and Kuwabara opened the door to see Yuka holding a pan full of lasagna. She smiled as Kuwabara let her in.
"Hey, Kazuma. I hope you don't mind lasagna."
"Are you kidding, Yuka?! Your lasagna is the best I ever had of your food! Oh, let me introduce you to my friends. The red head is Kurama, the guy in green with black hair is Yusuke, and the short guy with spiky hair is-"
"Kazuma, I'm the same height as him. Hello again, Hiei."
Everyone looked between me and Yuka, wanting an explanation.
"She happened to be at the same park as me. We met up after I jumped out from a tree she was sitting against."
"Just this afternoon, I sketched a picture of him against the tree in my book. Would you like to see?"
Yusuke nodded and she opened her book to the picture she drew of me. Kuwabara's eyes widened as he looked at it.
"Wow! She got Hiei down to a tee!"
"Yes. I must say she has done rather well."
Yuka nodded her thanks to Kurama and got to getting us some lasagna. Yusuke put a hand on Kuwabara's shoulder and smirked.
"Damn Kuwabara, you're lucky. You got both a hot girl and a great cook living next door."
"Eh, no biggie. She is pretty cool, though."
I narrowed my eyes at Yusuke's comment, not understanding why his observation annoyed me. I rid myself of the thoughts and looked up as Yuka handed me a plate.
"Hope you like it."
"Hn."
I took a careful bite and fought to keep my expression the same as I tasted how good it was. She did it all perfectly, and I ended up devouring it all. She smiled and took my plate.
"You act as if you never had lasagna before."
"I haven't. Your drawing must be as good as your cooking because it's just as perfect."
She blushed and looked away, her smile still in place.
"I never imagined your friend lived next door to me. It seems like such a coincidence. Us meeting twice at the park, then I find out you're one of Kazuma's friends."
"It does seem odd, but I wouldn't it let it bother you. Once you've met us, you're stuck with us."
She looked back at me and giggled. As the others ate their food, I spent the rest of the visit talking with Yuka. She talked about herself and I talked about my past without revealing exactly what I was. If she knew about my past and what I really was, I wouldn't be able to make my curiosity about her subside because she'd run from me, making me more than determined to know more about her. Before I knew it, we all had to leave.
"Man, Yuka. That was good food. Maybe we should come by more often."
"Thank you, Yusuke. I personally wouldn't mind seeing you all again."
I hung back to speak with her privately. I leaned against the front door and looked at her.
"What is it about you that intrigues me? Why do I suddenly become curious to know more about you?"
"I can't really say. People say it's because I'm of a pure heart and am a kind person. They say my good nature is what draws them in."
"Hn, that may be why."
"Well if you ever want to know more about me, feel free to stop by anytime."
"You barely know me."
'True, but I know enough about you to say I completely trust you and your other friends."
I smirked and nodded while opening the door, pausing to look at her.
"In that case, you'll be getting a frequent visitor."
"I'll be looking forward to it."
As I rejoined the others at Koenma's mansion, I smirked again as a thought came to mind.
'So will I, Yuka. So will I.'
That's a wrap for this one-shot. Hiei finds himself intrigued by Yuka, a human girl he meets, oddly enough, at the same park. After meeting him and the rest of Team Urameshi at Kuwabara's house, she says Hiei can feel free to visit her anytime, something the fire demon doesn't seem to mind. Part 2 of the one-shot will again be in Hiei's POV several months after he first met Yuka, him thinking the time has come to reveal what he really is and what he and the others really do. Stay tuned to see what happens