Melissa: Ya know what I just realized? I kinda forgot the disclaimer last chappy… ()
Miyu: It just shows how stupid you really are.
Melissa: Did I ask you?
Miyu: No, but I'm a very outspoken person.
Melissa: . Whatever. Anyway, thankies so much for the reviews! I'm glad I'm not the only Hiei/Keiko fan out there. ^_^ Let's start the chappy! Oh, and I should tell you that only the prologue was in first person.
Disclaimer: Whoa, almost forgot it again… Uh, I don't own YYH.
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Chapter 1: First confrontation
The stay on Hanging Neck Island had certainly started off rocky. The gang had just returned from their first fight, the match with Team Rokuyukai (sp?). The guys had all come back in one piece, more or less. Hiei had singe marks all over himself (which clearly unnerved Keiko), Kuwabara's entire body was bruised from the slams and blows that Rinku had landed on him, Kurama was both bruised and bloodied from Roto's attack, and not only did Yusuke have a large bump on his forehead, but he also returned to the hotel room without a shirt.
Keiko had been tense during the entire match. She was writhing around in her seat all throughout Hiei's dance with death, and could no longer take it by the time Yusuke and Chuu started their knife blade death match. She ran down to the arena floor and begged Kuwabara to get Yusuke out of the ring, but to no avail. But in truth, her worried demeanor was actually a guise to conceal her actual feelings. She was really more concerned about Hiei's well being, and found that Yusuke's fight would be the perfect motive for her to run down and see Hiei.
Now mind you, to say that Keiko loved Hiei would be incorrect. She obviously had feelings for him, but she wasn't quite sure what they were. Love was too strong of a word, and curiosity was an understatement. *Maybe I really am paranoid,* she would think after another one of her freakish dreams. *I just need to clear my head, that's all.*
She'd been having many of those dreams lately. One in particular had her extremely confused. It was the same scene, and Hiei had just kissed her. But the strange thing was that she didn't want him to stop. She woke up just as Yusuke had broken down the warehouse door, sweat forming on her brow and her lips tingling as if the kiss had been real. She didn't sleep the rest of the night.
But she had to put her thoughts behind her now. She was currently on Hanging Neck Island, a brooding ground for bloodthirsty demons, and she had to watch her back. She would be easy prey if a band of youkai caught her off guard while thinking of Hiei.
So now they were in their lavish hotel room, generously (but probably not sincerely) given to them by the Dark Tournament committee. Kurama and Kuwabara had started a game of cards and the girls (with the exception of Keiko, more or less) had gleefully joined in. Keiko was sitting on the couch next to the blue-haired deity known as Botan, and having quite a bit of trouble concentrating. She simply sat there with her fingers fidgeting with the hand of cards and her lips pursed. It may have looked like she was strategizing on the card game, but in truth her mind was on the fire apparition sitting on the windowsill.
"Hiei, come play with us," said the red-haired fox with a warm grin. "We're like a big family." (A/n: I probably butchered that line… Gomen, Kurama. ())
Hiei turned to Kurama and answered him with a blatant stare and a "hn". He then effortlessly jumped off of the sill and walked out the door.
Keiko watched Hiei walk out intently, a look of worry slightly grazing her face. "Where is he going?" she asked the remainder of the people in the room.
"Probably off to take a walk," Kurama said as he rearranged his cards.
"Oh." Keiko sighed. She'd been hoping that this would be her chance to get to talk to Hiei. *What a bummer,* she thought.
"Hey, Keiko? You still on earth?" Shizuru waved a hand in front of Keiko's face, trying to get her attention. "Earth to Keiko, do you copy?"
"Huh?" Keiko blinked a couple of times, and then turned to Shizuru, looking confused. "What is it?" she asked.
Shizuru's lips curled into her usual apathetic grin. "You were spacing out. It's your turn."
"Oh," Keiko said as she looked down at her cards once more. After a couple of seconds of attempted concentration, she put her cards down in failure. She then got up and headed to the door, grabbing her coat on the way.
"Daijobu, Keiko-chan?" Botan asked. "Aren't you going to play with us?"
Keiko turned to Botan and frantically thought of an excuse for her to leave. "Um… I'm going to take a walk too." She rushed out the door, bypassing a slightly stunned Yusuke who happened to be standing in the doorway.
"What's with her?" Yusuke inquired as he took the empty seat next to Botan. "She seemed awfully hurried."
"Said she was gonna take a walk," Kuwabara told him without even looking up from his cards.
A sly grin found its place on Botan's lips as a mischievous twinkle lit up her pink eyes. "Well, in my opinion, she's gone off to follow Hiei," she stated. That was Botan for you, always giddy and excited over silly love stories that may not even be true.
Kuwabara looked at Botan with disbelief. "You think Keiko's fallen for the runt?"
"Yeah, well more power to her," said Yusuke, taking a look at the cards that Keiko had discarded earlier. "Knowing her, she'll fall for whoever she wants to, no matter what anyone else says. Damn, these were crappy cards…"
Kurama smiled and gave a small chuckle. "You're not jealous, Yusuke?" he asked.
"Nah," Yusuke declined as he tossed a blue chip into the pot. "Keiko's my best friend. She's like a sister to me…a brainy, over-achieving, and nagging sister. Besides, she might be good for Hiei. Trust me, her slaps do wonders."
*~*~
Keiko was walking around the forest that stood nearby the Ankoku Bujutsukkai hotel. A cool breeze blew through her chestnut hair and she wrapped her coat around herself tighter to keep the warmth in. She'd been wandering about for thirty minutes now, and still had no idea as to where Hiei could be.
*Where is he?* Keiko thought, her eyebrows furrowing. *Or better yet, why am I looking for him? It's not like I love the guy or anything. Maybe I should just go back. That dream's probably just my imagination or something.*
As she turned back toward the hotel, her ears caught the sound of a rustle in the trees nearby. However, no wind was blowing about. Keiko grinned victoriously and headed back into the forest. *I've got you now, Hiei, and you are gonna give me answers weather you like it or not.*
She kept walking toward the rustling sound, which seemed to be getting further and further from her as she traveled deeper into the forest. That could only mean one thing; Hiei was trying to lose her. But even with this information, Keiko continued to follow after him, completely intent on finding him and saying something to him, even if it was "…Er…shmuck?"
That is, she was intent on following him, right up to the point where she fell over the upturned tree root. You see, while searching for Hiei, Keiko's head was focused on the canopies above her, and so she didn't notice the miniscule yet still effective obstacle in front of her.
Keiko groaned in pain and pushed off of her elbows, propping her onto her back. There were a few twigs stuck in her now-disheveled hair and her skin felt grimy with dirt. There was one particular smudge on the tip of her nose that was really bugging her. Also, her maroon leggings and gray sweater were equally soiled. She sat up and inspected the damage done, only to find that there was a large hole ripped into her pant leg right above her right knee.
"Oh great…" she muttered through gritted teeth. "Stupid, stupid, STUPID Keiko!"
Keiko made a feeble attempt at getting back on her feet, but then fell back down as a twang of pain shot throughout her ankle. She lay back down, and quietly cursed the situation she was in until a black blur caught her eye. Before she knew it, she was standing again (though rather wobbly) and beside her was Hiei.
"Baka ningen," Hiei scolded her as he wiped the dirt off of his black pants. He lifted his crimson pupils to Keiko in his usual stoic and defiant stare, and then spoke once again. "Can't even follow someone without tripping."
SMACK!!
Apparently, Keiko took his remark offensively because the next thing Hiei knew, he was lying face down on the cold forest floor with a bright red handprint on his left cheek. His eyes flared angrily and he scrambled up to his feet. Within less than a second, he was in Keiko's face and glaring his signature death glare.
"What did you do that for, onna?! I helped you up, didn't I?" His voice was murderous, as if he had never been slapped before, although that was hard to believe. He was about to continue his irate rant until Keiko silenced him with her own.
"What do you think I did that for?!" she spat back, the same ferocity that Hiei possessed reflected possibly ten-fold in her sepia eyes. "You insulted me, you jerk! What were you expecting me to do, hug you?!"
There was a moment of uncomfortable silence, and then Hiei spoke again. This time, there was an air of cocky confidence in his tone; not arrogant like Yusuke's, but calm and reserved.
"You wanted to earlier," he responded with a smirk.
Keiko threw her arms down to her sides defiantly with her hands balled into fists. Her face was flushed with anger as she stared down the Jaganshi. "And just what is that supposed to mean?!" she yelled, making a few birds fly out of their trees.
"You know what it means," Hiei said coolly. "Not only have you been following me, but you were staring at me during the entire match."
*He noticed?!* Keiko's mind screamed as a sweat drop fell down the side of her head. She shook it off and in its place was a large vein that was convulsing violently. Her fists were clenched so tightly that her arms were shaking from the tension. And then…
WHAM!!
Hiei hit the ground once again, now with swirly eyes and two red, blotchy cheeks. He blinked the swirls out of his eyes and got up, only to be greeted by a still fuming Keiko. Her exposition was so fierce that he actually shrank back a bit in fear.
"And here I was thinking that no one was more infuriating than Yusuke!" she bellowed, adding in another slap to Hiei's face. "Besides, it's not like I could help the fact that I thought you were a good kisser!!" She was about to slap him again, but then she realized she couldn't take back what she had just said.
"NANI?!?!" Hiei asked, so stunned that his voice came out in a squeak.
Keiko slapped her hands over her mouth, looking just as mortified as he did. "I… I… What I mean is…uh…" She could feel her cover blowing out from underneath her and felt her face grow even hotter. "I… I'm going back to my room," she declared, eager to get out of the forest and out of the nightmare that she had just gotten herself into.
She turned to leave, but Hiei stood right in front of her, glaring murderously once again. She tried to side step him, and even shove him out of the way, but in the end it all bore fruitless.
"Will you please get out of my way?" Keiko asked, her face still as red as Hiei's eyes. She was panicking, and she needed to get out of there.
Hiei shook his head impudently. "No. You're not going anywhere until you tell me about this kissing business," he growled, daring her to try to get away.
But unbeknownst to him, Keiko was just as stubborn as he was. *Gotta get out of here…* she thought, her mind racing. *How do I…ah ha!* She grinned at him, making it obvious that she held the trump card that would make him leave her alone. He looked wary of this, but then shrugged it off. She however, was still grinning cheekily.
"If you don't let me go," she began, her tone even and calm, "I'll scream loud enough to wake the dead. And just what will you do when people come looking and find that you're harassing a poor, teenage, ningen girl?"
Hiei's pupils shrank in horror. *She… She didn't!* he thought. She was accusing him of harassment! Sure, he had been slapped a few times by girls, but never had they gone this far. He couldn't believe it; it was simply mind-blowing.
"Why you little…" he snarled at her, but her smirk never wavered.
"Are you gonna let me go or what?" she asked smugly, smiling with a faux innocence.
Hiei disappeared, and then reappeared a fraction of a second later high up in a tree. He shot Keiko a look that said "I despise you", and then let out a low "hn".
Keiko braggingly beamed at him, and then started skipping off. After skipping about a yard away, she stopped with a look of curiosity on her face. "Hey, Hiei, what's 'hn' supposed to mean, anyway?"
Hiei indignantly turned away and laid his back against the trunk of the tree with his eyes closed. She wasn't going to get an answer from him any time soon.
Keiko's smirk faded at this, and she crossed her arms irritably. *He gave me the cold shoulder, the jerk!* She walked off with a discourteous grunt and called out, "Men, honestly!"
Hiei just smirked with satisfaction. *She's cute for a ningen, but is she ever hotheaded.*
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Melissa: See? I told y'all it would get longer.
Miyu: (looking at reviews) Wow, SIX of them for one chapter and in ONE day?
Melissa: I know! I'm so happy I could spit!
Miyu: Please don't.
Melissa: Fine. Anyway, you send in more reviews, I update sooner. You guys totally inspired me to write this chappy! And not even one flame! ^_^
Supreme Neo Countess-
Miyu: Yeah, all of those flamers are just jerks. It's their loss.
Melissa: Wow, Miyu-chan, you said something nice!
Miyu: Don't get used to it.
Melissa: So, how was that chappy? Hope it was good! Thankies for reviewing! ^_^
Shiro Ryu-
Miyu: Whoa, someone said Melissa's writing was good?!
Melissa: I'm so happy! ^_^_^_^_^_^ And wow, I was actually begged for another chapter?! Overwhelming pride… Thankies for reviewing! ^_^
Rose Angelz-
Melissa: Yeah, it doesn't say which year (although I did find a site that said Yusuke's birth year was 1982 O_o), but since their both 14, it's safe to assume that she's older, right? Also, it's a shared theory of many other authors, including myself. Thankies for reviewing! ^_^
Edainme-
Miyu: Yeah, the baka's obsessed with Hiei/Keiko pairings too.
Melissa: (- the baka Miyu's talking about) . Oh, you are too kind. But I didn't think that the prologue was that funny… Was this chappy funny?
Miyu: Oh, and as for those dreams, they're not gonna pop up anytime soon. Sorry about that, but they were just for the plot.
Melissa: ^^;; Yeah, that's true. But thank you so much for your kind review! I really liked it! ^_^
bit-Blackmage-
Melissa: Yeah… Aries can be hard-headed (no offense or anything). And you know what I think is funny? I'm a Sagittarius that's obsessed with Yusuke, and Aries and Sagittarius are supposed to be love matches lol.
Miyu: Great. Now she'll add that to the list of reasons why she loves Yusuke, and that's one damn long list.
Melissa: Thankies for reviewing! ^_^
Keeper of the Apocolypse-
Miyu: Four times? Shmuck.
Melissa: .# Shmuck is my word, dammit! I still don't think that chap was that funny though… Maybe it was just the Keiko getting laid line… lol Thankies for reviewing! ^_^
Melissa: Yeesh, I didn't think that many people liked Hiei/Keiko pairings. I'm not alone! ^-^
Miyu: But you're still a freak.
Melissa: That's not a bad thing.
Miyu: ()
Melissa: Um, anyway, I have something to ask of the reviewers, kay?
1) Is Keiko getting to be OOC? If she is, please tell me. I don't like writing OOC characters unless I'm being silly.
2) Is it just me, or was the beginning really repetitious?
Melissa: So yeah, could you please note on that in your review? You don't have to, but I'd appreciate it. Please review and have a nice day! ^_^