Author's note: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho or any of its characters. I simply borrow them to use in my own sick, twisted fantasies like this one.
Chapter Twenty-Six
When the party had ended, the guests started their slow, lazy march out the door, wishing me a happy birthday and congratulations on their way out. The team were among the last guests to leave and I smiled, hugging each of them good-bye.
"This was fun. I'm glad to see that you're happy here," Keiko smiled.
"Thank you."
"Don't be a stranger. You know you're always welcome back," Botan added.
"I'll try to visit more," I chuckled.
"I'm jealous… You were rich before and now you're a frickin' queen or something," Yusuke grumbled as he left with his hands in his pockets.
"Wanna know how I did it?"
"How?" Kuwabara asked and my grin turned evil.
"I had to kill a few people and steal some stuff to sell to some other guys," I whispered and laughed when he tensed up in nervousness and chuckled.
"Haha! Good one, Kimiko! You're so funny!" he tried to brush it off.
"No, really…"
"Okay, guys, it's time to go! It's been great, Kimiko! Have fun, good knowing you, have a good life!"
I laughed as he practically ran out of the door following the girls and Yusuke, leaving Yukina and Kurama to be the last ones. I hugged Yukina tight and held her hands.
"Take care of yourself, Yukina, and don't let that idiot drag you down, okay?" I chuckled, motioning toward Kuwabara, so she giggled.
"I will. You take care, too. And, um, about Hiei…"
I shook my head and smiled. "Please don't."
She looked dejected, but smiled and hugged me again anyway before following after the others. Kurama was last and I smiled and hugged him as well.
"You really are happy and in good hands here, I can see that. Daisuke seems to love you very much, and though I'm not sure to what degree, you love him as well, else you wouldn't have accepted the ring," Kurama stated, and my eyes widened as I held my hand, covering up the ring that was still placed firmly on my finger. "I don't want to ruin it for you, but I thought that you should know something about Hiei before we leave. He's gone missing. We lost contact with him about a month ago and haven't heard anything from or about him since then. Before he left, though, he would often wake up in the middle of the night calling out for you."
With that, he took his leave and I was left standing in the doorway watching them walk away and into a portal that Botan had summoned. Not long after, Daisuke walked over and held my hand.
"You look like you've seen a ghost. What happened?"
"Hiei's gone missing…"
"Well... What are you going to do about it?"
"I don't know… I wouldn't even know where to start looking, and even if I did, I've never been able to sense his aura unless he's within touching distance. It would be like looking for a single clover in a vast field of green."
"Then don't worry about it until it becomes a problem."
"How can you say that?" I snapped at him. "You know how I feel about him and you can still say that to my face like it's nothing?"
"Then I ask again, Your Majesty, what are you going to do about it?"
I glared at him and turned on my heels toward my room, him following close behind me.
"I'm going to find him."
"How?"
"I'll search everywhere. I can start at the Ice Village and I won't stop until I find him. I don't care if I have to turn Demon World upside down, I will find him."
"What about me?"
"I'm going to marry you regardless."
"That's not good enough!"
"What do you mean it's not good enough? Didn't we agree at the beginning—?"
"I know what I said and I know what we agreed on, but… Do my feelings for you mean nothing? Is he really more important than me? What does he have that I don't?!"
I paused and stared at him in shock, my heart wrenching in my chest. He looked devastated and so unsure of himself. For a moment, I realized how cruel I was. I'd always assumed that he could always be aware of and in control of not only other people's emotions, but his own as well, being an empath, but I never took the time to think about how tiring it must be to always have everyone else's emotions constantly bombarding you and not be able to stop it. And how could he differentiate his own emotions from those around him and know for sure that they were really his?
"At first, it was a game. I wanted to watch the drama unfold between you and him because it was interesting, but the more time I spent with you, the more I cared. I felt how you felt and I sympathized with and became attached to you to an extent and now I can't stop. You're always on my mind, I get excited when I get to see you again, making you smile is the greatest accomplishment I can achieve in a day. And I know that you love me. I know it's not exactly romantic, but it's been slowly getting there and that's been more than enough inspiration for me to become even more invested in you.
"I don't know when or how, but I've fallen in love with you, Kimiko. I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want to go to bed with you in my arms and wake up to your amazing eyes looking at me, still cuddled into me. I want to spoil you with lavish gifts, candlelit dinners, late night flights, long walks through the gardens. I want to start a family with you and adore our children as much as our parents adore and treasure us. You said so yourself that you could see us living happily together, so why are you going to him when that happiness is within reach right here with me?"
"I'd be lonely…" I muttered. "For all my life, I've been a criminal. Stealing and killing were not only a means of survival, but I always wanted to grow stronger. I've always wanted to take on bigger, stronger opponents. Yes, I could be happy enough settling down with you, and I could live the rest of eternity dedicating myself to that kind of lifestyle but it would never be quite satisfying enough. I live for danger, and the only one I would trust with my life is Hiei because he is the same as me. For all my life I've loved Hiei, ever since we were young."
I continued on my way calling for Miyu, leaving Daisuke standing dumbstruck in the hallway. When I found Miyu I explained what was going on and she was just as shocked and flustered as Daisuke had been.
"B-But, Mistress what about the estate and your father?" she asked.
"I'm going to talk to my father now. Send for Adrian for me, please, and have a carriage prepared. We're going to make a trip to the Spirit World first."
"A-and what of the young Lord?"
I paused and looked at the ring that he'd snuck onto my finger. "I'll deal with him later…"
I found my father and the Akanetsukis in the study and when I walked through the door, their joyful banter had paused and my father and Miss Hiroko's faces fell upon feeling or seeing my expression.
"Miko, dear, what is the problem?" Father inquired, standing up from his chair and walking toward me.
"It's complicated. I don't have much time to explain, but someone very important to me has gone missing and I need to find him."
"Missing? For how long? Who is it?"
"For a month now. I just found out about it today. I'll explain everything when I get back, I promise, but I need to find him."
"This person you're looking for… do you love him?" Miss Hiroko asked.
"Yes, I do. Very much."
"And what of our Daisuke?" Mister Arata inquired as well.
"I do love him… but I'm not in love with him."
"You could grow to love him, yes?"
"I honestly don't think I could ever love him fully or as much as he deserves. He is a wonderful man and he's done nothing but been good and kind to me. He's helped me when I've cried for and because of the man I'm going to find, but my heart belongs to another and right now it's telling me that I need to find him, so please, I'm begging you to let me go, father. Please just let me find him and bring him home."
"Where will you look?" Father asked.
"I'll start in the Ice Village. It's where we first met and became friends, and where we were both cast out. From there, I don't know but I won't stop until I've found him."
"Let her go," came Daisuke's voice from the doorway.
"Daisuke," Miss Hiroko gasped.
"I've seen the two of them together. It would be wrong of me to deny them so strong a love. They have a history and a mutual understanding of each other that would take me centuries to attain with Lady Kimiko. Don't mistake it that I don't care about our engagement. I've made my feelings very clear to Lady Kimiko. It's because I care that I humbly request that you let her go. If anything were to happen to him, I would be left with a hollow shell of a fiancé."
"Very well. You may go. Take whatever you need to ensure your safe return. We will have a discussion when you return about what to do next."
"Thank you. Thank you so much."
I ran out of the room as fast as my gown would allow me and standing outside of my room were Miyu, Constantine, and Adrian, waiting for me.
"What's going on, Mistress?" Constantine inquired.
"A search. Is the carriage prepared?"
"Yes, Mistress, everything is set to depart to the Spirit World," Miyu stated.
"I'll explain along the way. Miyu, will you find me an outfit that will easily allow for movement, please? Pants are preferable, and a top that will allow for my wings to spread out if need be."
"Yes, Mistress."
"Constantine, will you be our coachman this evening? It'll be a brief round trip to and from the Spirit World."
"As you wish, Mistress."
I nodded in understanding and rushed into my room to change. Miyu had already found an outfit for me so I quickly changed and when I'd finished, I paused, looking at the ring on my finger again. I slowly pulled it off and set it on my night stand before turning and walking briskly toward the door.
"Hiei, wait for me…"