Author's Note: Thank you to all those readers that have patiently waited over a year for this new chapter. Unfortunately, another update will not come for probably another year. Life, as always, has complicated itself and has taken much of my time.

So until the next chapter is posted, please enjoy this revival of sorts. And as always, please express your comments, concerns, criticisms, etc. in review form. Thank you.

Loop
Chapter 11: Counting

'How many days has it been?' a silver-haired man sighed as he thought of the day's date. How long had it been since he last touched Botan's hair, held her hand, or felt her kiss? How much longer did he have to wait?

"Oi! Kurama, pay attention!" someone barked urgently. Looking upwards, Kurama almost panicked at the sight of an airborne Yusuke. The high school student attacked the older man with a flurry of punches and some random kicks, but nothing touched the fox.

In fact, when Kurama spotted a small break in Yusuke's barrage, he moved into the younger man's inner circle and threw him across the room. Genkai snorted in amusement while she watched her friend fly the opposite direction he had come from. "You should have kept the element of surprise, dimwit."

Panting for breath, Minamino admonished himself for losing focus during a sparring match. His thoughts had been so wrapped around Botan he had forgotten that he was at Genkai's dojo training with two Spirit Detectives in-training. Fortunately, he had returned to reality before Yusuke could hit him; after two years of training, Urameshi had enough Spirit Energy behind his attacks to punch through concrete. Kurama winced at the thought of the possible damage he could have suffered.

"Shut up!" Yusuke snapped as he jumped back onto his feet effortlessly. He wiped his mouth and glared at the seated girl. "I would have hit him square in the face if I hadn't said anything; and I would rather not die a painful death from his rabid fan girls for messing up his pretty face, Genkai."

'Plus, if Botan ever found out, she would never forgive me.' Yusuke glanced away at the thought of his friend's worry and anxiety.

The pink-haired girl snorted again and stood up for her lesson. She had caught Yusuke's expression before he had hidden it beneath his glare again. "Well, I guess you're not as dimwitted as I initially thought." With a small chuckle, she walked towards Kurama while Yusuke retreated to the side to recover and wait for his turn again.

She smiled at the silver locked man while giving him a polite bow. "You worked Yusuke hard today, Kurama-san."

"Ne, not as much as last week," he shyly admitted while rubbing the back of his neck. He took another glance at the younger man. "He's getting better very quickly."

"That and you're distracted today."

Although his expression remained the same, Kurama's voice betrayed him. "Is it obvious, Genkai-san?"

"Only because I know what was distracting you."

Kurama laughed uneasily. Even though Genkai was now far younger than he was, she still made him feel transparent with her attitude. "Well, I guess we should begin your training." Immediately he began amassing a huge amount of Spirit Energy: the level that Genkai would have to match if she wanted to train unharmed. When her aura's power matched his, effectively creating a protective barrier around her, Kurama continued his instruction. "We're going to immediately start from where we stopped last week. Now, you must concentrate your energy to one point of release. For each person, there is a different point which he releases his Spirit Energy; however, your specialty was your hands. With enough concentration and focus, you should be able to develop your Spirit Wave."

With a nod, Genkai began concentrating her energy towards her hands, successfully collecting a good amount as an irregular mass. As she spent more time focusing her will, the irregular mass of energy slowly began taking shape as an orb. However, she put too much focus and energy into her hands, and her aura lost weight against Kurama's. She slid five feet backwards before revamping her aura level.

"Damn it," she cursed in frustration. Panting for breath, she growled at her little progress. "I can't focus my energy in my hands AND stand against your aura at the same time, Kurama-san. Plus, I have no idea what I'm supposed to do with that energy after I learn how to manipulate it." Pushing her rosy strands from her face, Genkai asked, "Don't you have some specific instructions, Kurama-san?"

"I can only tell you what I've observed, Genkai-san. You did not mentor me; you taught Yusuke your technique, and only him. He had no time to develop it further or pass it down to anyone else. Now we must reclaim what you have lost if we are to regain everything that has been stolen." He smiled at her and said, "Don't stress too much about it, Genkai-san. I'm sure you'll get it—you were, after all, a genius of your time. Besides, I'm sure that as your memories return, your memories of how you developed your techniques will come along as well."

"Yes, I guess so," she nodded in agreement. Refocusing her energy and controlling it to use the bare minimum possible, she again tried to form another concentrated form of Spirit Energy.

After giving Genkai some more tips on controlling her Spirit Energy and how to properly manipulate her aura without compromising her attacking position, Kurama returned to Yusuke to complete his lesson for the day.

"Did Botan and I go out on missions alone?" Yusuke asked while dodging his instructor's dangerous plants. He blocked them from time to time with Spirit Energy surrounding his hands.

"At first, yes, but not many," Kurama answered while directing his creations strategically. "Kazuma-kun, Hiei, and I joined you fairly early in your career as a Detective. And after you returned from Demon World, the two of you did go on some missions alone from time to time. It was pointless to involve the others, since you were more than enough by then." He looked at the young man. "Why do you ask?"

"Eh, no reason, really, I just remembered us on some missions; that's all," he laughed nervously. Yes, indeed, he did begin to remember. He remembered his time in Human World after his long awaited return and the Spirit World assignments that had waited for him. He remembered those missions that he had shared with only Botan—and the one mission where she had confessed about her loneliness.

He remembered how he had never expected Botan to ever feel lonely. After all, she had him, Keiko, the Kuwabara's, Yukina, Hiei, and Kurama as friends—they could almost be considered family. But with one look into her amethyst eyes, he knew Botan felt a different loneliness. She had said that she felt happy for everyone being able to enjoy a loved one's presence: if only she could finally find that for herself one day.

And then out of pity and as a silent promise, Yusuke kissed her to assure her that she would get all that she desired. She had kissed back, her thank-you to him.

He could not deny it: the kiss had felt right. But at the same time it had felt wrong. With one action, he and Botan had told each other how much they cared for one another; and it also said in its briefest moment what they were and were not. Of course, they did not mention the kiss to another soul. 'As if I would confess to that, even if it is a regained memory,' he mentally added with a heavy sigh. 'Not only would Kurama kill me, but Keiko would too!'

"Yusuke?" Kurama's voice beckoned. "Yusuke, are you all right? Do you need another break?"

"Eh? Sorry, I spaced out for a moment." He forced a smile and focused harder on his training. "No, I don't need another break. Do you mind showing me that move again?"

Going over the steps again, Kurama watched Yusuke progress at an exponential rate, something very characteristic of the old Yusuke. As his thoughts wandered, Kurama again remembered how much time had passed since he last held Botan, how many more days he had before he could see her again.

'Just five more days.'

"What?"

"I don't want to meet for two years, Kurama-san."

He said nothing while he stared at his phone receiver and waited for her words to sink in. Barely a month had passed since Botan had lost consciousness for several days after the exorcism and they had resumed their dating. And three days ago, on their last date, everything had seemed fine and perfect. So why this sudden decision? "But why?" he finally managed to ask.

"I can't explain it to you, right now, Kurama-san, but please trust me." He cringed at the desperation in her voice and wondered what troubled her so. What did she fear? Did she remember his past form? Had her elder brother said something to her? Why was she pulling away from him?

"We cannot see each other for two years—and even if you want to see me, I will not see you." He frowned at the sound of her conviction; it overwhelmed the desire he heard in her voice. "I know this will sound silly to you, but this has nothing to do with my feelings for you, Kurama-san. I really do care for you. If you still love me and want to marry me after graduation, then I will most humbly accept your offer. If you don't care for me then as you do now, I will understand."

Closing his eyes, Kurama listened to her anxious breathing over the phone. He could imagine the frantic beating of her heart, her soul dangling on the edge for his answer.

'I must trust her.'

"I will wait for you far beyond time," he assured her with a calm but warm voice. "Let's meet then at the old temple in the mountains out of town two years from now to celebrate our reunion. I'll send you the address tomorrow, and that will be my last message to you until we meet again."

When he heard her release her breath in relief, his heart ached. "Thank you, Kurama-san."

"By then, will I be able to simply call you Botan?" he asked wistfully.

From her dead silence, he knew she was blushing. Her reaction was far better than what he had expected. Unfortunately, he could not witness it. "I-If you want…you could call me Botan now."

"Then, Botan, would you just call me Kurama before we part ways for two years?"

"K-Kurama…Kurama…" He felt immense joy and passion hearing his name from her lips. If only he could see her now and kiss those sweet lips. "Thank you."

"Botan, I love you."

'I won't abandon you, not after waiting all of this time.'

"In two years, Kurama," she whispered before she hung up.

A flicker of sky-blue and silver whisked through the skies, only noticed because of Spirit World's contrasting sky. Streaking through the heavens like a shooting star, Botan relished the feeling of the wind blowing against her. The long sleeves of her pale pink and white kimono looked like wings as they bellowed behind her.

After flying for a little longer, she turned back towards the training grounds for ferry girls. When she landed, Hinageshi and Ayame met her. "Wah, that was beautiful, Botan!" the younger spirit girl squealed in delight. "I've forgotten how wonderful you were at flying."

"There's a reason why Botan was a very important ferry girl, Hinageshi." Ayame smiled serenely at the sky-haired girl. "Botan is the only spirit I've ever known who mastered all of the skills required for a ferry girl in a decade. And for her to recall everything in less about a year and a half is unprecedented."

"It's nothing," Botan shrugged bashfully while retracting the Spirit Energy from her oar and making it disappear. "The only reason why I relearned everything so quickly is because I remember everything from the past."

"Do you really remember everything?" Ayame questioned quietly.

"As much as I can remember, I guess, about my past life," Botan grinned in return. "I remember the last life fairly well, and I've been remembering some things from my life before that." Yes, she could remember bits and pieces of her life as the princess. But her memories as Yusuke's assistant were bolder: and ever clearer were her memories of Kurama. She sighed despondently from thinking of him. "I just hope at the end of all this, he'll still want me," she murmured to no one in particular.

Hinageshi heard her and rolled her eyes. "Well, there's no question about that."

Raising her head, Botan made a surprised face. "Huh?"

"Ne, isn't it obvious to you, Botan?" her former pupil giggled. "Why do you doubt Kurama-san's feelings for you? By now there shouldn't be a question. He's waited for you for one hundred years already—do you think two more years is going to deter him from you?" Throwing back her ruby locks, the ferry girl winked, "Ha, if you think that, then you don't really know him as well as you thought."

"That's true, isn't it?" Botan laughed sheepishly. "I should have more faith in Kurama-kun."

Ayame smiled at the girl's easy nature, pleased to see her so happy. After so many centuries, she would finally accomplish her one desired dream. "Isn't it nearly time for you two to meet again?"

"Yes, it is."

"How many more days?"

Botan made a face as she calculated the time that remained. She and Kurama had arranged to meet at a time that meant many changes for them: a time where she would be considered an independent adult, where her student status would not create a social barrier, where she fully depended on him. "Four more days until graduation," she smiled.

She stared off into the sky wistfully.

"Four more days, Kurama-kun."

Leaning onto the table, Botan inquired earnestly, "So all I need to do is not appear on Kurama-kun's life file? For how long?"

"Eh?" Koenma choked on the tea stared at the girl while wondering if he had heard right. "Wait, you'll willingly work with me?"

"Yes—is that a problem, Koenma-sama?"

"No…it's just—it's just I didn't expect you to be so willing with the plan," he murmured. His mind went back through the centuries, thinking of all the times when his employees would always put up a fight. Botan especially had fought him more often than George; and, as much as he did not want to admit, she won most of their arguments. The fact that this was their first encounter for her human life and that he had just demanded her to break away from her lover had Koenma expecting a long, bitter battle. But she agreed with him! 'Does the Reincarnation Loop mess with souls' personalities too?' the prince wondered.

"So, how long, Koenma-sama?"

"Two years," he said, not missing a beat in the conversation. "Do you think you can go two years without making any contact with Kurama?"

Botan's instant grin made Koenma uneasy. "That'll be easy."

"Huh?" Before Botan could answer, the server stepped into their room again to refill their drinks. She thanked the waiter kindly and then returned her attention to Koenma when once again alone.

"I've waited so many centuries in Spirit World for my true love, Koenma-sama; and I missed him because I was there while he was in Demon World," she began with a small smile. "And then I couldn't fall in love with him when I finally did meet him because you were trying to hide me from those who would prevent my dream." She looked at him with so much emotion in her amethyst eyes. "But now, since I'm human, I have a chance to be with him now. You know this better than anyone, Koenma-sama. Humans and demons fall in love all the time, right?"

"Yes," Koenma admitted reluctantly, "but usually high-level demons don't fall in love with humans. Most A-level demons, like Kurama, think humans beneath them and would never even think about mating with a being less powerful."

"Well, we're different," the girl assured warmly. "We were different from the beginning."

"Different doesn't mean anything when it comes to love."

Botan smiled knowingly. "We're going to make it, Koenma-sama. We were destined for it."

After stepping off the bus and trekking for some minutes, Kazuma made a familiar walk up many stone stairs and rather quickly reached the top of them. With a grin, he entered the temple grounds he had habitually visited for the last two years. "Yukina-chan! Yukina-chan, where are you?" he called out lovingly.

He did not hear a response and decided that she would most likely be in the back, near her garden. As he made his way towards that place, he thought about the last two years and how close he had grown to Yukina. Over time, they had quickly become familiar and spent every, if not every other, weekend together and were very good companions. In fact, one could say that Yukina was now Kazuma's girlfriend—but he would not dare assume so much without her permission first…which, by the way, he still needed to ask.

"It's not exactly the easiest thing to do," he huffed at himself in frustration. "I mean, honestly! You can't just ask a girl out of the blue if she'll be your girlfriend."

'But you've known her for over two years now!'

Kazuma bowed his head in shame at his own response. "I'm the bravest when it comes to fights and heroic deeds," he mumbled despondently. "But when it comes to women, I'm the biggest coward." With a heavy sigh, he continued his way. Hopefully seeing Yukina would erase some of his shame.

When he reached the back of the temple, he saw something that surprised him. Yukina stood at the edge of the spring, her fingers delicately dipped in the water. Kazuma held back a gasp when he saw an aura build around the maiden and the air drop ten degrees. Parts of the spring froze; and with a twist of her Demon Energy, the frozen water broke into clean bricks of ice. As the air returned to its normal temperature, Yukina began removing the ice bricks from the spring.

Kazuma silently watched her from a distance as she set each block of ice around the flower patch, effectively cooling and watering the parched blossoms. When she looked up, she smiled in embarrassment. "Ah, you surprised me. How long were you there, Kazuma-kun?"

"Eh," he blushed, "for a while now, Yukina-chan." He stared at his feet, unable to find the right words to say. What could he say?

Brushing stray strands behind her ear, the petit ice maiden murmured, "Ne, then you must know what I am, yes?"

"I've actually known for a while," he answered shyly. He twiddled his thumbs as he kept his knees from wobbling. His heart drummed anxiously as he explained himself. "I don't know if you remember me saying this, Yukina-chan, but I have a sixth sense. I can see ghosts and spirits and see auras around people. Our first months knowing each other, I could sense that you weren't human. And after spending more time with you, I figured that you were a demon."

Great relief swept over Yukina. For many months, she had feared that the old Kazuma she had cherished so much no longer existed. Not that she disliked the reincarnated Kazuma as he was: but she needed reassurance that this man had the same soul as the man she once knew. "But then why didn't you say anything if you knew for so long?"

He shuffled his feet while still being unable to stare directly into her eyes. "Well, I figured that you had a reason why you didn't want to tell me the truth. So I decided that I would keep it a secret, too, until you felt like you could share it."

The ice maiden frowned slightly when she realized the truth. "You still don't recall me, do you?" she asked softly.

"What?"

'So he still isn't completely the man he was.' Yukina felt her heart ache and flutter at the same time. 'But that's all right because I have time. I will be patient with him, just as he was patient with me all those years ago.'

With a gentle smile, she motioned for the young man to join her, and together they sat in the garden. "Kazuma-kun, let me tell you a story," she said with her sweet melodic voice. "You might remember bits and pieces of it, but there will be some parts that you won't quite remember. It's a story about an unruly young man that liked no one but saved a little boy's life unexpectedly one day…"

Only three days remained.

"Ne," a voice giggled while knocking Yukimura Keiko from her daydreaming, "don't you think he's cute?"

Looking towards where Botan motioned, she blushed before stammering, "Yeah." She quickly glanced at him, looked away, and sighed at her hopelessness. "But he's so hard to approach. Not to mention that his family is high class so you just don't know what to say to him and that fact that every girl in our year has a crush on him." She picked with her chopsticks at her bento, a little glum at her misfortune. What chance did an average girl like her have to win the most sought after boy in school?

"Why not just talk to him?" Botan demanded while boldly staring at the young man. She smiled and waved at him in a friendly manner when he looked her way. "He's a person like anyone else."

'How does she have so much confidence?' Yukimura wondered as the dark-haired boy nodded civilly at Botan's wave. He even cracked a small smile, which sent Keiko's heart fluttering. 'Where does she find her courage?'

Again the sky-haired girl intruded on her friend's thoughts. "Ne, Keiko-chan…do you have a crush on him?"

In gut reaction, she asked, "Do you have a crush on him?"

Botan frowned at Keiko's response. Being friends since elementary school, Hanasaki had expected a truthful answer from Yukimura. Crossing her arms to show her dissatisfaction, she huffed and said frankly, "Fine, I'll admit first that I have a crush on him."

"Botan-chan!" the other girl exclaimed.

"What?"

"How can you admit that so easily?" she demanded, a deep blush overtaking her face. She looked around to see if anyone had heard; thankfully, no one had.

"It's only the truth," Botan shrugged. "Besides, what difference does it make to admit it?" Taking another happy glance at the boy in question, she added, "He really is cute, even if he is so quiet."

Keiko sighed. Botan would think nothing about confessing her feelings. Keiko envied that about her friend, how she could admit her feelings in such a carefree manner: if only she could do the same.

"Let's be friends with him!"

"Eh?!" What other crazy ideas would the girl think of?

"Come on, Keiko-chan, it's not hard to make friends with new kids—and I'm sure it'll be really easy to make friends with him."

"Well, it should be easier for you, Botan-chan," Keiko murmured glumly, knowing very well that she spoke the truth. Botan could befriend anyone—everyone in the junior high school was her friend. "He's in your class, so it shouldn't be hard to make him like you." Looking at her watch, Keiko excused herself. "I have a student council meeting to go to. I'll see you later."

"Okay," Botan grinned. She collected her belongings and waved to boy again. "I think I'm going to go talk to him. I'll see you later." Returning her attention to the young man, she said, "Oi, Urameshi Yusuke, right? Do you mind if I sit with you and chat?"

Keiko felt jealousy sting her as she left the classroom, but she could not say anything out loud. After all, she was the one being a coward. She had no right to fuss about Botan making a sincere move to befriend Yusuke. But she could predict how things would work: like always, the boy would find Botan charming and kind and become her friend; he then would find himself falling in love with her and ask her out; Botan would only want to stay friends; and the boy would be heartbroken, never the same again. Urameshi Yusuke had been at the school for two weeks already and still had not made one new friend. How would he ever make any friends if he was depressed and heartbroken as well?

Next week, she found out that Botan and Yusuke had become very good friends. In fact, they had already gone on a date—not a real date, Botan assured, but a friendly outing to become better friends. "Hey, I'll introduce you to him!" she smiled while walking home with Keiko one day.

"W-What?" she stammered in response.

"He's going with me to the café, so you should come with me and meet him too!" her friend said without missing a beat. She seemed somewhat oblivious to the horror etched on Keiko's face.

"But—Botan-chan! Don't you have a crush on him? This is your big chance!"

"What are you talking about?" Stopping in her bouncy gait, she turned around and sighed at Keiko's response. "Well, even if I do have a crush on him, Keiko-chan, that doesn't make him automatically mine, does it? Our entire year has a crush on him. You have a crush on him too."

Her face burned from the truth. "But you're friends with him now. Shouldn't you be trying to win his love?"

"I can do that with or without you as his friend," Botan winked playfully. When she took another glance at Yusuke who went on ahead of them, her expression fell into a thoughtful smile. "But really, he needs some friends."

"But I wasn't invited before and—"

"Your arguments are useless. You're coming!" Before Keiko had time to argue further, Botan grabbed her arm and dragged her to the date: literally. From the school grounds to the café, the brunette fought the entire way, aghast that she would be the third wheel on a date. Her embarrassment only increased when they reached the café and Yusuke raised a brow at them.

"Eh? What's all this, Botan?"

'They're already on a first name basis?' Keiko felt her heart disappear with her hopes. If Botan and Yusuke were already this close after one week, then she absolutely had no chance of ever winning that boy's heart.

"Ne, Yusuke, this is my friend Yukimura Keiko," Botan introduced with gleaming amethyst eyes. "You remember her, right? She's in class 1-A next to us. She visits me often during lunch."

"Yeah, the really smart one, right? I've seen you visiting Botan often." He gave her grin. "Botan just won't shut up about you and Sakurato Genkai." With his confident smile still in place, he held out his hand to her. "It's good to finally meet you, Yukimura Keiko-san."

Keiko felt her heart thumping against her chest while she held out her hand to him. His confident grin becoming an awkward smile, he took hers into his. And as soon as they touched, they knew.

They knew.

Throughout the outing, they did not say another word to each other and instead talked to and through Botan. She did not notice their lack of communication but thought that they all had a good time.

After their initial introduction, Keiko and Yusuke went on another date alone before they openly told each other how they felt. However, they quickly realized that Botan would be hurt and decided not become anything official until Botan found someone she truly liked. Although their acquaintance was brief, Yusuke cherished Botan as a close friend and did not want to see her hurt. Likewise, Keiko did not want to betray her best friend's feelings.

So for many months Keiko tried her best to suppress her feelings; but after an entire school year, she could not keep the secret any longer. At the end of their first year of junior high, she finally rallied the courage to confess to her best friend.

"Ah, so that's what you've been doing all this time." Botan sighed, somewhat overwhelmed by her friend's lengthy and emotional confession. "No wonder you would run off without saying a word sometimes and become so distant." Turning to Keiko, she said with a small smile, "I'm glad that it was that way. I thought you didn't want to be my friend anymore."

"Botan, I'm really sorry."

"Eh?" Her grin widened as she took a seat. "Why are you apologizing?" A giggle escaped her lips while she twirled the light blue tendril beside her face. "You took a chance, didn't you? And you found something very special. That's nothing to apologize about, Keiko-chan."

"But you liked him and became friends with him first and—"

"It doesn't matter who liked who first, Keiko." Yukimura promptly shut her mouth, surprised at the seriousness in Botan's gaze and voice. Rarely did she use names without honorifics. "The fact is that he's in love with you—and you're in love with him. You two are meant to be, really, and I never intended on getting in the way of that."

"But…" Keiko felt tears in her eyes.

"You're stressing over nothing, Keiko. Yusuke is meant for you, I promise."

"But what about you?" Her hands trembled as she tried controlling her emotions. However, Botan's kindness pushed her towards the edge. "You two became friends so quickly, and you're much closer to him than I am. I took something special from you."

"Ah, that's nothing, Keiko-chan!" Botan said while waving her hand. She had returned to her carefree spirits. "Yusuke and I, we're just friends. Besides, he's definitely not the one for me."

"Eh? Then who is?"

"Someone," Botan murmured wistfully while staring out of the window. "He's out there somewhere, waiting for me."

Keiko sighed at the memories flooding her mind, remembering how jealous she had been about Botan's assurance. Even though she had no physical proof about her "true love," she knew for sure that Yusuke was not the one for her. She had known that someone else in the world held that place in her destiny. 'Then again, she has a strong sixth sense,' the brunette smiled slightly. 'She did, after all, meet Kurama-san later…but who knows what will become of that?'

"Hey, what are you thinking about?" Yusuke asked while taking her hand. He gave her a concerned look. "You're a little too quiet."

She smiled at him and said sweetly, "I'm just thinking about when we first met."

"Oh." Feeling slightly awkward, he changed the subject. "Are you ready for our date tonight?"

"The big one you promised a year ago?"

He smiled slyly at her while saying, "Trust me, you won't be disappointed."

Looking around, she confessed, "I'm already impressed by the limo, Yusuke. I didn't know when you planned for something big, you meant this big." She turned away and murmured sheepishly, "This is the first time I've ever ridden a limo."

"Well, then enjoy it until we reach our first stop…which, by the way, we should reach shortly."

And on cue, the limo stopped. Keiko gasped when the door opened and revealed their location. "Yusuke, what are we doing here?" she demanded. She read the sign again, making sure she had not misread it. When she was sure, she wondered why they stood in front of the most expensive clothes boutique in the city.

"We need to pick up some clothes. We can't go to dinner dressed like this."

"Why not?"

"Well, where we're going for dinner won't let us in under-dressed. We need some real clothes."

He helped her out of the car and led her into the boutique. As soon as they entered, people pulled Keiko away and forced her into a dressing room. She protested at their sudden actions, but Yusuke warmly assured her, "Just go with them—they know what they're doing. I'll see you out in a few minutes."

After being measured, pushed, pulled, and all other actions, Keiko emerged from her dressing room in a black satin gown that resembled a tuxedo. The front narrowed to a V while at the waist white ribbon crisscrossed from the front to the back. In the process of dressing her, they had styled her hair up, had made-up her face, and had also provided matching jewelry and shoes. As Yusuke stepped out of his room, he whistled at the sight of her. "I told you they know what they're doing…Man, I'm going to have to tip them good."

Blushing, Keiko took a glance at Yusuke. Her face simply grew hotter when she realized how handsome he looked in his new suit. Dressed in a white jacket and slacks with a black shirt and white tie, he matched her perfectly. "You look very handsome too, Yusuke."

Red tinted his cheeks, and he looked away shyly. "Okay, I guess I'm leaving them a really big tip."

After paying for their makeovers, Yusuke looped Keiko's arm through his and led her back to the car as a gentleman would. Once they were settled, the driver began the trip towards the restaurant, which they reached in about ten minutes. Again she felt shocked by the renowned restaurant but said nothing. Her boyfriend had, after all, promised a big night; he had fulfilled her expectations beyond her imagination.

Before she knew it, Keiko had been eating dinner with Yusuke for an hour before being able to find her voice to express her feelings. "Yusuke, I'm surprised that you're using the family money," she remarked carefully, knowing the topic's delicacy. "You've been against even touching that money since junior high—so why suddenly the change?"

"It's not family money," he replied with a straight face.

"It's not?"

With a deep breath, he started, "I'm going to be working for the company in a few days. So now, whatever money I receive from Okaa-san, it's going to be my salary. And the money that I'm using tonight is the money I've been earning these last few years."

"Earning?" Keiko's face scrunched in confusion. "But don't you live day by day on the money you earn from your part-time jobs? When did you have the time to save this much money?"

Yusuke felt guilty by her indignant tone, knowing the thoughts running through her mind. If he had all this money to blow on one night, why had he not instead spent it on smaller dates over time, over the last five years? She would have much rather spent many moments with Yusuke then spending one fine night of glamour and riches—she cherished his time.

Taking her delicate hand into his broad one, he said with a sheepish smile, "I'm sorry. I know that you wanted to spend more time with me…but I thought that this could make up for all of that. I thought that just spending whatever time we had together was enough to know what we feel."

"You're an idiot," she murmured through her grin. She had already forgiven him a long time ago.

"Well, this idiot had to work really hard to complete his dreams of treating you like the princess you are."

"Eh?"

Rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand, he explained, "So, do you remember when I first moved into the neighborhood? Everyone whispered about how rich I was and how high class I was; either that, or they muttered about how I was a devil in street fights."

"Yes, I remember," she said out loud while remembering that she had been one of those people. 'Thank you so much, Botan-chan! Without you, we wouldn't be dating like we are now.'

"Well, I had moved there because I couldn't stand the life that I had anymore," Yusuke continued. "Everyone in the elite circle, they were all the same: back-stabbing, heartless snakes. Not to mention the Yakuza kept trying to recruit me as a head boss—I was just surrounded by corruption everywhere I looked. So I managed to convince Okaa-san to let me move out and live on my own for a while. She wanted to pay for my living, but I didn't want to depend on her like all the other brats I knew depended on their parents. So I swore that I would only use her allowance if I was close to my deathbed."

Keiko sighed tiredly, knowing very well Yusuke had not kept that oath. Several times throughout their junior high school years, he had either entered a street fight, suffered an accident, did not have enough money for food, or even became severely ill; but he had never used his mother's money. And through all of those times, she wondered why. Why did he not use the money to buy himself medicine? To pay for the hospital bills? To buy him food?

"After I had made that I promise, I entered Sarayashiki Junior High School and met you and Botan." He blushed at what he was about to reveal. "When I saw you, I wanted to break my oath and treat you the best I possibly could."

"But what kept you from doing so?" she played along.

"If I broke a promise to myself, then how could I ever keep a promise to anyone else?" He raked his free hand through his hair. "I felt awful whenever I couldn't treat you as well as most other boyfriends would their girlfriends, but I didn't know what to do."

She smiled, remembering all of the "big dates" they had in the past: going to the amusement park, going to the festival together, him treating her to a fast-food restaurant. "But that's how we were different," she laughed. "Granted, we argued more than most couples, but that only proved how much closer we were. After all, how many teenage couples can claim that they've argued worse than we have and never had the fear of breaking up?"

"None that I can think of," Yusuke laughed heartily. He sighed as he thought of the past. "You definitely are the strongest girl I have ever met."

Shaking her head, Keiko said, "Botan-chan and Genkai-chan are definitely stronger than me."

"You're the only woman in the world that I will never win against; and no other woman but my mother would ever love me and be patient with me as you are." Urameshi grinned. "There's no doubt. You're definitely the strongest."

"Well, you were definitely not an easy boy to tame," she giggled.

They sat quietly for a moment before Yusuke quietly asked, "Do you remember when I kept flipping your skirt and saying all those mean things to you when we were in elementary school together?"

"Yes—eh?—wait a minute," Keiko frowned. What had he said? "We weren't in elementary school together, Yusuke. We met in junior high."

He stared solemnly into her eyes. "But you remember all of that, don't you?"

Frighteningly, she realized, she did. Oddly, she remembered the bad habits Yusuke began picking up around then: smoking at eight, pick-pocketing and gambling at nine, fighting gangsters at ten…But that was not the same Yusuke she knew—or was it? No, it could not be the same boy; she met Yusuke in junior high! But then—how did she know all of this?

"Do you remember our engagement?" he inquired.

"I do… You just came back from Demon World and—" Keiko stared at her boyfriend in shock. Demon World…Spirit World…Human World…All of it was returning to her.

"Do you remember the first time you met Botan?"

"We met…We met on the roof during junior high." Her eyes grew wide. "I thought she was a girl you were taking advantage of or something…But really, she was your Spirit Assistant. And you told me that at one point she was your guide." She looked to him in confusion. "So what's real and what's not? Is this just a dream that we're living?"

"No," he shook his head. "Both set of memories are real."

"But then…your feelings for me, are they…?"

"Fake? No, they're real. Just as this is," he whispered as he slipped a cool band over her ring finger. As she gazed at the glittering diamond solitaire on her left hand, tears came to her eyes. "I wanted to do this on our anniversary day, but since that falls on a school night I figured that this time would be best. Besides, now you'll have time to let it all sink in before I announce it."

"Sink in?" With a deep breath, she accepted everything she had just learned. When she looked up to her boyfriend, a sly glint sparkled in her chocolate eyes. "I haven't even given you my answer yet."

"And I haven't asked you anything," he grinned back at her just as playfully. As his expression softened, he took both of her hands and kissed them. "Would it be all right if I announced it on our anniversary and made it official then?"

"Of course."

By two days, she would not be able to contain it any longer.

In two days, their world would change.

"I wonder if Hinageshi found any information on that demon," Hanasaki Hiiro thought out loud while walking through the Spirit World Palace. He had just checked in with George to see if there were any new cases for him and found that there were none. So now, he walked towards the Spirit World library where he would meet Hinageshi to complete their latest case.

"Did Yusuke and Botan do this too? When they worked together, did they work like Hinageshi and me?" he thought. He frowned at his train of thought, it wondering towards his younger sister…and her boyfriend, who he had not seen in recent years.

And that shocked Hiiro.

For two years Kurama had kept his word and had made no contact with Botan. And as much as Hiiro did not want the fox demon marrying into his family, he could not help but pity him somewhat. How painful must it be to not even have a glimpse of the girl he loved for two entire years?

'I've never met a man more devoted to anyone that Kurama-san.'

Thus, Hiiro did not understand their relationship. He could only pieces this much together: his younger sister had been a ferry girl in her previous life. During that time, she had worked with the past Yusuke as his assistant. Soon afterwards, they met Kurama. The relationship between the former thief and ferry girl did not become anything significant until four years into their acquaintance. Then suddenly, Botan died.

Koenma had not elaborated on why she had died. He had hinted, however, that even then, Kurama and Botan were not meant to be. But in defiance to that, Kurama had fought to be with her for the last one hundred years, and against all judgment and advice, Botan's reincarnation had fallen in love with him. Then after a talk with Koenma, she had made Kurama swear not to see her for two years.

Why were Botan and Kurama not meant to be? Why, after fighting so hard to love each other, had Botan pushed Kurama away?

"What's going on?" the Spirit Detective sighed while running a hand through his dark navy hair. "Why is everything so mixed up?" Even after working for Koenma for so long, the Prince of Spirit World did not trust Hiiro enough to tell him. "Damn it, Koenma-sama, why won't you tell me? Isn't it enough that I've been working for you for years AND that she's my sister? Why can't you—"

He looked at his other hand and groaned. Being so engrossed in his thoughts, he had carried his recent report out of Koenma's office with him. He quickly rushed back to the room and placed the file on top of Koenma's desk where the prince would review it later.

A massive amount of Spirit Energy approached the room, sending off several alarms in Hiiro's mind. No one but Koenma had that level of Spirit Energy at the Gate of Judgment; but the prince would never show off his power or flare it about haphazardly. Not quite understanding why, Hiiro hid beneath Koenma's desk and tried controlling his quivering as two spirits entered the office in a noisy manner.

"Is this where the file would be?" one demanded. Hiiro heard them step around the room, shuffling through papers and files as they did so.

The other spirit responded, "That's what Enma-sama said. He said we would find the information on Koenma-sama's desk."

Hiiro measured his breath and controlled his Spirit Energy levels to avoid detection. When two feet appeared in front of him, he reminded himself that they could not see nor sense his presence. Doing his best to withstand the spirits' oppressive auras, he remained deathly still.

"Won't Koenma-sama notice this file missing? This is a high-profile mission, after all."

"That's why Enma-sama sent us to memorize its contents so that it wouldn't go missing. Now hurry up and find it!"

'Memorize it?' Hiiro frowned. He listened to them frantically shuffle through mountains of paperwork. 'Why would they need to memorize the file? And why all of this secrecy from Koenma-sama? What is Enma-sama planning?'

"Found it!" The fluttering of paper stopped, the sound of someone thumbing one by one through leaves of paper. "Heh, she's pretty cute."

"And human," the other added with a hint of disgust.

A smack echoed through the room with a painful exclamation. Hiiro could only assume the one who had found the file had punished his friend. "Read it, idiot. She may be human, but she has a powerful sixth sense; and she was a ferry girl in her last life, and the one before that she was a princess that pleased the gods." The leading spirit chuckled. "She's definitely special, just like Enma-sama said."

"Too bad we have to kill her."

"Well, orders are orders." More shuffling occurred before the spirits sighed in satisfaction: they had replaced the file. "Come now. Koenma-sama should be returning to the Gate of Judgment in a day. We have to fulfill Enma-sama's orders before Koenma-sama has any time to counteract."

The two spirits discussed and argued about their assignment for a little longer before leaving. Once their Spirit Energy had faded from detection, Hiiro crawled out from beneath the desk, searched for the badly replaced file, and looked at the contents the spirits had examined. In an instant, he threw the folder down and bolted out of Koenma's office and headed towards Human World as fast as he possibly could.

The name on top of the file blared in his mind: Hanasaki Botan.

She had one day.

One final day.