Welcome to the first chapter of 'Have Faith in Me,' the sequel to my story 'Of Roses and Flames.' If you haven't read it, then I suggest that you go and do that, and then return here to read this chapter. Everything will just make more sense that way, I promise!

As usual, Yu Yu Hakusho rightfully belongs to the wonderful Yoshihiro Togashi, who, sadly, I am not. All I own are the ideas in my head and my OCs.


Three and a half years had passed since Ashton had woken up in the Spirit World infirmary. In the three weeks she was held in the infirmary, she'd been told about what had happened at the castle and about whom she really was. Shortly after that, she'd returned to Winterhaven to rule what had rightfully been left to her by King Adrian, her true father. Much to the surprise of Koenma and the Reikai Tantei, she'd been welcomed with open arms by the people.

It had been over a year since she last saw any of her friends, with the exception of Kurama. He did his best to make the long trip to see her whenever he could, bringing with him news of what was going on in the Human World with the others. During his last visit, he'd brought several pictures of everyone to show her. Each time he left, she found herself missing her friends more and more than she had before seeing him.

To say that she was unhappy with how her life was at the moment wouldn't have been totally correct. She loved living in Snowcrystal Castle. She loved the town of Winterhaven and all of its people. But she missed living in the Human World at Genkai's temple. She missed her friends and goofing off with them.

Most of all, though, she missed Kurama, even when he did come to see her.

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Night had fallen over the lands. The snow had temporarily stopped falling, and stars shone brightly in the sky. Ashton was standing out on the castle's west tower's balcony, the one that she'd jumped from years ago. She was leaning against the railing, looking up at the stars. A soft sigh escaped from her lips. She'd been up since before sunrise, and she'd been terribly busy all day. She was exhausted, but she wouldn't let herself go to sleep just yet.

She'd had a lot on her mind in the past few weeks. Her advisors had lately been trying to pressure her into marrying, saying that the alliance with another kingdom would strengthen her own. Suitors had lined up for a chance to have her hand in marriage, but she'd found each one more repulsive than the last. She'd told her advisors that she had no interest in settling down in the near future; they had chosen to ignore her words. They'd even gone so far as to start planning a ball in hopes that she'd meet the right prince. She'd stubbornly insisted that if she had no choice but to attend, her friends would make an appearance as well.

"I wish things would go my way just one time," she said as she walked back into the tower. She tightly closed the balcony doors and left the tower. The castle was silent as she made her way back down to her second floor bedroom. Once there, she got ready for bed and soon turned in for the rest of the night.

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To Ashton, the days seemed to crawl by. There in the castle, she had little contact with anyone that truly interested her, so she tended to keep to herself most of the time. Living her life that way had begun to depress her.

It had been two months since she'd last seen Kurama. She was hoping, praying, that he would be able to come back to see her soon, but she'd come to learn to not expect that he would. When she'd last seen him, he'd mentioned that his mother was very sick and that he would be taking care of her until she was better. He normally visited her every three weeks, but she hadn't seen him since then.

"M'lady, you need to eat," she heard one of the servants, Kiyo, say to her. Ashton jumped slightly; she'd been lost in her thoughts. She blinked a couple of times and looked up at the girl. She shook her head and sighed.

"I'm just not hungry right now," she replied with a shrug. Frowning, Kiyo picked up the plate of untouched food and handed it to another servant, who took it away. She sat down in the chair next to Ashton's and gently grasped her hands.

"Please cheer up, Lady Ashton," she pleaded. "He wouldn't want to see you hurting like this." It took Ashton a moment to realize who Kiyo was talking about. She sighed a second time.

"I know, Kiyo, I know," she quietly replied. "But I miss him –all of them, really– so much. I should have never let myself get so attached to anyone in the Human World. I should have realized that we wouldn't always be together." She pulled her hands back and reached up to wipe the tears that had welled up in her eyes. She looked out of one of the dining room's windows, and her eyes widened as she spotted a familiar head of red hair in the distance.

"Oh!" she exclaimed as she rose from her chair. A smile lit up her face as she ran into the foyer and through the castle's doors. The pain in her heart seemed to ebb away as each step brought her closer to Kurama.

For the first time in a long time, she felt truly happy when Kurama's strong arms wrapped around her, bringing her into a hug she'd desperately needed. He spun her around a couple of times, and their laughter rang loud in the air. Ashton could feel eyes watching them from the castle, but she couldn't bring herself to care. All too soon, Kurama put her back on the ground, but Ashton didn't let him go.

"I'm so happy that you came to see me, Kurama," she said quietly, looking up at him. The fox smiled, but it faded away when he saw that her eyes were red and slightly puffy. He brought one hand up and gently ran his thumb over her cheek.

"You've been crying," he bluntly stated, almost looking surprised as he spoke. "What's wrong, Ash? Who's made you cry?" The silver-haired girl simply smiled and shook her head.

"It doesn't matter, Kurama," she happily told him. "I'm fine. Really, I am." The fox raised an eyebrow. Choosing not to say anything yet, he took hold of Ashton's hand and led her back into the castle. They went up the spiral staircase to Ashton's room. She sat down on the edge of her bed, and Kurama pulled a chair up in front of her, sitting backwards in it so that he could rest his chin on the chair's back.

"You can't lie to me, Ash," he said, studying her face. "Now tell me what's really wrong." A sigh escaping her lips, Ashton looked away from him. After a long minute, she began to tell him of the pressure the committee was putting on her and about the upcoming ball. She didn't tell him that she'd really been crying because she missed him so much. She didn't want to make him feel bad. Kurama stayed silent through her explanation, and even after she was done, he didn't immediately speak.

"Don't let all of this get to you, Ash," he finally told her. "I won't let them put you in any situation that you don't want to be in." She gave him a skeptical look. Kurama simply chuckled and smiled.

"I'll keep you safe, I promise," he told her. "Have faith in me, Ashton."

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It was decided, mostly by Kurama, that Ashton would return to the Human World with him as a sort of mini-vacation. She would be staying for a week, leaving shortly after Tefy's seventh birthday party the next weekend. She was looking forward to the trip; it would be nice to get away from Winterhaven for a few days to see her friends again.

Kurama was sitting in a chair watching Ashton as she packed for the upcoming trip. As she busied herself with that task, she was giving orders for the week to Kiyo, who was writing them down as quickly as Ashton was saying them. Kurama chuckled softly as he listened, and Ashton paused and looked over at him.

"Take a breath, Ashton," he told her. He smiled. "You're going to start turning blue in the face if you don't." Ashton blushed and fell silent. She finished packing in that manner, embarrassed that she'd been talking so much. It was a nervous habit she'd developed over the years. She wouldn't admit it to Kurama, but she was afraid to leave the castle for so long. She feared that something bad would happen in her absence. As if sensing the fear, Kiyo comfortingly placed a hand on Ashton's shoulder.

"I'll keep everything under control while you're away, m'lady," she assured Ashton. Thanking her, Ashton zipped her bag up and then looked over at Kurama. She smiled cheerfully.

"I'm ready to leave whenever you are, Kurama," she said to him.


And that's that! Thank you for reading, and please make sure to review! Reading reviews makes me feel very, very loved, and they motivate me to continue on.

Much love,

Pandah