Dear me, life has given me a lot of up and downs, but my muse has returned and with that comes a new chapter. Enjoy!
Chapter 4: Yusuke's Decision
Keiko slumped down shocked. Yusuke was one of the most powerful men to walk this planet and here he was treating her wounds. He was a prince. Keiko blinked away the shock her eyes showed. Raizen's heir grinned.
"So you're pretty feisty when you want to be, huh?"
Keiko looked away, focusing on bandaging her thighs. "I was only defending myself," she murmured.
"'I'm not saying it was a bad thing. It's just surprising to see the nervous little dancer slapping demons around." Yusuke chuckled.
"Speaking of that, I should go back downstairs. I want to make sure those two demons aren't causing any more trouble."
Keiko stood up and steadied herself. Yusuke reached out his hand, but Keiko ignored it.
"It's alright," she assured. "It just stings a little."
Keiko made her way down the stairs with Yusuke trailing behind. The regular patrons had been replaced with reporters. Around a dozen or so reporters and camera men had come swarming in the small restaurant after the two demons had come staggering out. Seiya was in the center, telling her account.
"Well after a subpar service if you ask me, the waitress girl went to the two demons to clean up their mess. Those two were vulgar, rowdy, and just crude. Had I been with a lesser demon or God forbid a human, I would have feared for my life. Luckily my prince was by my side. Regardless of how those demons' acted, that waitress was still in the wrong. She attacked them out of nowhere! After she was hit, Yusuke jumped in against my order…"
"Your order? Since when did you ever order me around?"
Seiya whirled to see both Keiko and the prince.
"Oh, darling, I didn't know you had returned." Seiya's eyes shot to Keiko, glancing at the bandages. "Oh good, waitress girl you have returned as well. I trust you're well enough to serve our dumplings now."
Keiko gritted her teeth but held her tongue. She gave a small bow to Yusuke. The young girl tried to make her way to the back, but the reporters blocked her path. They were shouting out questions, asking why she attacked the demons and if she and other humans were taught to behave as such. When Keiko heard the accusations of her parents teaching her to rebel, she knew she needed to speak and make things right. She had wanted so badly for her family's restaurant to be known, but not as a place for fighting or discord. The woman only hoped her words wouldn't fumble as she tried to speak this truth.
"It was wrong for me to have struck that patron. I was taught far better and it wouldn't have mattered whether or not he was demon, human, or otherwise. You shouldn't hurt another simply because it's in your power to do so. So yes, I was in the wrong just as Miss Seiya says. That doesn't represent this restaurant or my family, and it was a poor representation of me. With that being said, I will never allow anyone to mistreat or take advantage of me. That wasn't how I was raised either."
For a moment there was an awed silence at the brazen words of the human. While they were not quite rude, they certainly weren't the words of someone giving apologies or seeking forgiveness. The reporters stepped aside to allow Keiko to the kitchen. Just as she turned the corner into the kitchen, Keiko looked at Yusuke. They exchanged a small smile before she spoke again.
"I would also like to thank Prince Urameshi for coming to my aid. It is a gift to have been given such a strong and capable heir to the throne. Now please excuse me. I still have food to serve."
As Keiko stepped farther back in the kitchen, the sound of clicking cameras and reporter's questions became simple white noise. Her father ran embraced her before examining her bandages.
"Thank goodness you're okay, Keiko. Don't worry, those demons are banned from here."
Keiko shook her head. "We need the money too much to ban anyone, Dad."
Mr. Yukimura regarded his daughter sternly. "I would never put a profit over your well-being, Keiko."
"I know Dad. I didn't mean it like that. I just don't want to burden you."
Mr. Yukimura smiled. "You're a smart, talented, and headstrong young woman. The one thing you're not is a burden."
"Thank you."
Keiko's lips quivered slightly and she pulled her father into another hug. The feeling was short lived. She could hear Seiya voicing her disdain in the eating area.
"Ugh, well let me get 'Her Highness' her food."
Mr. Yukimura chuckled. "That girl's a handful, but you can handle her fine. I heard your speech out there."
Keiko grinned and nodded. She brought out the dumplings and the two dishes for Yusuke and Seiya. Yusuke watched her wordlessly. Despite her wounds, she moved effortlessly from table to table. The meal was uneventful. Yusuke's patience began to wear thin as he attempted to eat his meal amidst the snapping pictures and interview questions.
The last patrons left, leaving only Seiya, Yusuke, and Keiko in the eating area.
"Yusuke, I think we've spent quite enough time here. I want to leave."
Yusuke massaged his forehead, irritated. "Then just go Seiya. I'm not making you stay."
Seiya bolted up angrily. "You know just because you're prince, that doesn't mean you're such a catch."
"Then stop chasing me. You and I both know we aren't good for each other."
As their voices rose, Keiko kept her eyes on the table she was cleaning. Against her better judgment, she moved painstakingly. She knew it was bad to ease drop, but it was too tempting. The news stations never showed this side of the two demons. Keiko pondered how many people knew their true feelings for one another.
"Yusuke, I'm not your enemy. You and I want to same things. You know that." Seiya reasoned.
Yusuke shook his head. "We haven't wanted the same things in years. Don't think you can lie to me. I'm not buying it."
Seiya's lips curled in a frown. "You know, you tell me to stop speaking down to others, but maybe you can do the same thing with me."
Yusuke didn't speak. His body was turned away, and his eyes were trained on the window. Seiya sighed.
"Fine, have it your way my prince." Seiya talked out and a stuffy silence entered the room.
"So do you always ease drop on your guests?" Yusuke commented dryly.
Keiko froze, but tried to play it off. "What do you mean?"
You've been wiping that one spot for five minutes now."
Keiko blushed at her blunder. Keiko walked over gingerly and picked up the remaining dishes at Yusuke's table. Yusuke massaged his forehead again.
"It doesn't matter to me what you hear anyway." Yusuke grumbled.
"I thought Seiya was supposed to be betrothed to you. Why do you dislike her?" Keiko inquired.
Yusuke scoffed as his narrowed eyes slid over Keiko's moving form. "You read too many tabloids if you believe that shit."
Keiko tensed up slightly. Perhaps she had crossed a line and gotten too familiar. Maybe she put more into last night and the morning than Yusuke did. Yusuke noted the hurt that graced the girl's eyes for a moment before she cleared the table and left to the back. Keiko returned with the bill and turned to leave when a firm hand grasped her wrist.
"Thank you by the way."
Yusuke let go of her wrist and stood to leave. Keiko's browed lifted in confusion.
"What did I do for you to thank me?"
"Thank you for saying I was a good heir. You even made it sound genuine."
Yusuke put a sum of money on the table for the food. Keiko smiled.
"You're welcome and just so you know I was genuine."
Yusuke returned the smile. He left the shop under the soft glow of the street lights. Keiko walked to the back to see Mr. Yukimura giving her a sly smile. He put the closed sign up and signaled for Keiko to follow him out.
"Well this was an exciting day. Wouldn't you say?"
Keiko nodded tiredly. "I'm glad it's over. I can do without the excitement of today for a while."
The two started their long way to the hospital.
Yusuke woke up to the sound of rustling papers and Kuwabara's voice in his hotel room. He rubbed his eyes sleepily.
"What the hell are you doing here? How did you even get in here?" Yusuke spat groggily.
"Urameshi have you been reading the newspapers today?" Kuwabara asked, throwing a newspaper at his friend.
Yusuke caught it with one hand and glanced over the print, "You just woke me up, when would I have read anything, Kuwabara?"
Yusuke sat up and scratched his head. His eyes roamed over the paper until it fell on a picture of Keiko. The picture had been taken during her short interview and he and Seiya were in the background of the picture.
"What is Keiko doing in the paper?"
Kuwabara sat on the bed a tossed a few other newspapers. "Apparently she's pretty popular after slapping that demon. She made you sound pretty good too."
Yusuke browsed the other papers. All of them had Keiko's face post on the front page.
"Wow, I didn't expect this." Yusuke breathed out.
"I think the real question on my mind is why are you in the picture with Keiko in the first place, Yusuke?"
Kurama spoke in the same tone as a disappointing father as he shut the hotel door and pulled up a chair next to the two men.
Yusuke groaned. "No the real questions is why is the hotel staff giving so many people keys to my room! Someone needs to be fired."
"Stop changing the subject. The entire purpose of that outing was to solidify you and Seiya as a couple to the public. Instead the stations and papers are speaking of the same girl you happened to share your bed with the night before. I'm sure that's purely coincidental." Kurama reproved.
Yusuke sighed. "I don't even like Seiya! I did my part. It's not my fault that Keiko makes better news than Seiya. It wasn't a bad thing though. Even the demon papers seemed to like her."
Kurama smiled wryly. "I suppose that's true. It's rare to have a human speaking positively of the king or his heir."
Yusuke looked at the picture a moment longer before grinning. "Hey, let's make the liaison."
The room was silent. Kurama looked at Yusuke like he'd grown another head.
"What? Yusuke, be serious." Kurama implored.
"I am being serious! She made me look better in a couple sentences than all the outings with Seiya ever did."
Kuwabara laughed. " Yusuke this has to be the dumbest choice you've ever made. Choose a politician or priest, whoever but now a stripper!"
"She's a waitress," Yusuke refuted, "beside I've been thinking about it. I'm not cut out to rule on my own. Kuwabara, I need your psychic abilities. Kurama, you're really smart. I need your strategies. Right now I need to know what the average human is going through. I need someone who's smart, hardworking, and won't take shit from anybody. I think that's Keiko."
Kurama sighed. "You're asking a great deal from an average human, you realize that, don't you?"
"I make a good point though."
Kurama stood up. "Well if that's your choice and she agrees to it, then you'll be responsible for explaining this to your father. Well let's find your liaison."
Okay so another chapter is done. I'm still fleshing this story, but I think development and roles of the characters will be interesting. Let me know what you think. Review!