A/N: Sorry if this took long! -_- Gomen, gomen! I didn't have
much time, but I decided to finish it today. Dance and celebrate!
^^;;
Love Through Centuries:
Chapter 1: Starting Over At Reikai
Written by: Ketsuki
Disclaimer: Yu Yu Hakusho does not belong to me, it belongs to other people whom I do not remember nor do I personally know, so I'm not declaring any personal rights to this anime. This story is written solely for entertainment purposes only. And trust me, it is entertainment. And again, Sailor Moon does not belong to me, it belongs the creator and the company who produces it, whatever, I don't care. Just keep in mind it doesn't belong to me at all.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
It was not her day. After a chase down the hall after an oni who had taken one of the important documents she had needed Koenma's signature on it, tripping over sheets of paper in the documents room and banging up her knee pretty good, crawling under her desk for a loose hair pin and smacking her head when she was getting up, and now a mysterious green light was erupting from the middle of her lord's office room. Okay, not exactly mysterious, because she knew what it was, but if it was outsiders, she knew they'd freak almost right away. Yes, definitely not her day.
Sighing tiredly, she waited till the two forms shimmered into view. One had tousled brown hair, dark hazel eyes, dressed in brown trousers, blue cloak like outfit that covered his top and hung front and back, and a blue pacifier dangling from his lips as he removed his hand from hers, before her glance landed on the young girl beside him.
Correction, she thought, a young woman. She had neck length black hair that flowed freely around her face, seeming swirling in an endless black. Her skin as white as ivory, her eyes as brilliant a violet as amethysts, her lips as dark and red as blood. Her face was emotionless, as she donned a sailor like outfit, a skirt that was almost scandalously high and would seem so on some other girl, but this young woman was dressed in it so comfortably she was fit to believe that the outfit was made just for the mysterious person. In the woman's hands, however, was a tall silver staff, a moon shaped blade on top glimmered slightly in the fluorescent lights, and she couldn't help but shiver and imagine that blade coming down on someone who deserved it. For it seemed that the staff was not misused, it's blade gleaming.
She, herself, bowed in front of her lord but couldn't help eyeing the woman warily. These were dark times, after all, and they were not yet over. She did not trust strangers as easily as she had almost a thousand years ago.
"Stand up, Botan-chan, you know there's no reason to bow", the young man said, rubbing his eyes tiredly as he sighed, walking to his chair and practically plopped down onto it. With a poof, the young man had disappeared and reappeared was a young child, barely 4 years of age, extremely chubby wearing just about the same thing except there was a giant hat on his head that she, his ferry girl, thought would envelope his head if he wasn't careful about moving his head around.
"I know, but still. I've been doing that since I've came here, you know it's become a habit. Besides, we have more important things to discuss, Koenma-sama. How did the meeting with Neo Queen Serenity go?" she asked curiously, cocking her head to the side. At the corner of her eye, she saw the woman glance at her and she shivered, a chill running down her spine at her intense yet broken look.
He allowed her a tiny smile, full of exhaustion. "Fine, just fine. She rules Ningenkai well. It is hard to imagine that we have watched her since she was fourteen and when her life took a turn for the better", he said.
Botan grinned. She should know. She was one of the ferry girls who had been sent to watch tiny Tsukino Usagi, and she had loved her like a little sister. It was hard to imagine young childish Usagi was now the ruler of Ningenkai, the kind and gentle yet powerful beyond belief young woman who had sacrificed her teenage years for the dreams of all the people, in all three worlds.
"However, she told me that Ningenkai is in trouble, something dealing with the past, present, and future that is too complicated for even us to comprehend. Therefore, she has sent a young trained warrior to hide out here, in case anything goes beyond their control and she is needed. Saturn, this Botan. Botan, Saturn", Koenma said, nodding to both of them.
Smiling, practically with relief that the woman was not an enemy, she bowed to the girl as a sign of greeting and respect. If she was powerful enough to be considered as a back up plan by Neo Queen Serenity, she was certainly trustworthy.
The young woman smiled and she didn't look half as tense and angry as before. 'Perhaps a smile is just what Saturn needs'.
"I'd prefer if you not call me Saturn, but Hotaru. Neo Queen Serenity informed me that I should be going undercover – or perhaps that's not the proper word, disguised would be more like it, as a ferry girl. I'm not sure what that concept is, but I do hope to learn from you, Botan-san", the girl bowed the same way as Botan.
"Botan will explain everything to you, Hotaru-san. Botan, can you find an appropriate ferry girl uniform for her? In a few days, you and Hotaru-san shall accompany me to a diplomatic meeting with the three rulers of Makai", Koenma said.
Botan's eyes widened. "Rulers of Makai? De-demo Koenma-sama, you-you know Makai is at war with each other, all because of them! They're not who they used to be anymore!"
"I am quite informed of that, Botan-chan, therefore I am going to try to settle the differences between them. You two will help try not to evoke them to start a fight, which is what happens nearly all the time I've been there. This time, I'm trying to settle it for good. Too many has died in this war to let it go on", Koenma said firmly, shaking his head a bit. It looked rather strange to see a child doing such a grown up gesture.
Botan sighed in defeat, as she rubbed her temple with both her hands. "Hai hai, Koenma-sama. I will do as such. Come on, Hotaru, I'll show you to your temporary quarters and have you measured for your new uniform", she said, leaving Hotaru out of Koenma's office room.
"I hope this is a good idea, or else all our planning may go down the drain, Serenity-san…Let's just hope Hotaru and him manages to take some time off trying to act cold and be warm…For once", Koenma said to himself as he stood up to pace on the floor of his office room, just as he had done years ago.
Old habits die hard.
~*~*~*~
"Hmmm…Okay, done. Here, Hotaru-san, put this on!" Botan threw out a simple version of a kimono, though not half as difficult to put on. It was just a simple robe like outfit with an obi to tie it up.
Blinking, Hotaru picked up the robe and stared at it. The robe was rather simple, gold embroidering the edges of the dark purple robe, with twin golden dragons that were sown on delicately but not very detailed, that intertwined around the skirt like part of the robe, their heads resting on her shoulders. She saw it strange for a ferrygirl to be dressed with dragons on their clothing, but she wasn't one to complain. Heck, Botan's had little flower petals all over it. The obi was a simple black, and could be easily tied in the back. Brushing a hand over her brooch, making sure Botan was turned, her senshi outfit disappeared and she quickly slipped into the robe, tying the obi tightly around her waist. Her brooch was then attached to a silver chain and she hung it around her neck, safely hidden from view by the collar of the robe. Glancing at the pair of sandals or whatever they were Botan was about to take out, made Hotaru cringe and with a mere thought, her lace up boots from her senshi uniform appeared, matching the robe perfectly.
"Ah, Botan-san, I'll just wear my boots. I'm…not used to wearing those sort of shoes", Hotaru said, smiling hesitantly.
Smiling brilliantly, Botan practically threw the shoes back in. "Good. I hate these shoes, but we don't have a choice. I wouldn't wish these shoes on anyone, not even my worst enemy", she said, giggling as she shut the closet door.
Hotaru smiled, but inside, she sighed. This was a new life, a new part of life she had to go through. 'Oh, Usagi-hime, please come back safe and sound and get me out of here! Not that I hate it…But I don't want to leave Crystal Tokyo and everyone else…I-I don't want to go through this!'
Biting her lip as a constricting pain was felt in her chest, she tried to hold back the tears as she held out her hand and her glaive appeared, seemingly from thin air. She took a deep breath and smiled at Botan. 'Iie…I must be brave. Not that everyone is counting on me, but I'm counting on myself to make it through this. Doesn't matter that I'm going to another world in a few days with my so-called cousin's descendent and another ferrygirl who giggles and acts like Usagi-hime (not necessarily an insult), I'll be heading to a world with too many bad reputations; Makai, World of demons. Wait…That's not a bad thing…I can fend them off no problem…I don't know what I'm worried about anymore'
Shaking her head, she let Botan lead her out of the room and down the hall towards Hotaru's own room. "Okay, Hotaru-san, I'll tell you all you need to know. First of all, ferrygirls are women who's job is to guide souls to where they belong, either to Makai or Reikai. And if you're wondering about the gender thing, I don't know. There's never been a ferryboy before. There once was a Meikai, but it was banished eons ago, so you shouldn't have to worry about that. Now let's see…You're going to have to purchase an oar to ride on during your guides – "
"My glaive will do fine, Botan-san", Hotaru interrupted, feeling a bit foolish. She had battled for her life and used her ultimate world destruction power with her glaive, but now she was going to use it to fly? But no way in all three worlds was she going to ride on an oar. Not a chance.
Botan blinked and frowned uncertainly, then nodded and went back to chattering. "I suppose that's alright. Anyway, you're to listen to Koenma-sama, and only him, because he's the one who commands the oni and ferrygirls around here – "
"Oni?"
"Giant buggers who don't know left from right", Botan said, barely batting an eye as a large bulking creature walked down the hall clumsily, piled down from mountains of paperwork.
Hotaru blinked. "Oh…I see".
"Anyway, in a few days, we'll be heading to Makai. Makai is a world of demons, all kinds of'em. Fire demons, ice demons, water demons, or classified ones; sirens, werewolves, vampires, sorceresses/sorcerers, and so on…Oh wait…Kitsune as well…" Botan said, after only a second of hesitation.
Hotaru halted, her eyes wide. She turned to Botan. "Kitsune?" she asked incredulously.
Botan blinked at her surprise, then she nodded. "Hai, kitsune", she confirmed.
The black haired girl turned away and continued to walk as Botan chattered on and on about this and that. 'Hmmm…I wonder if this Makai is the same one Kuronue told me years ago…' A long time ago, she was taught never to get her hopes up too high. As they say, 'the higher you go, the harder you fall'.
"Anyway, we'll be going to Makai in a week. Ano…What else? Oh yes, the rules. In Reikai, ferrygirls have only two rules. Never appear to ningen because of personal matters, and two, never fall in love. Both are absolutely forbidden. Unless you have an order to appear before a ningen because of a special matter, then you cannot be visible to anyone but people of Reikai and Makai. Obviously, falling in love is not allowed. It's a really important rule too, as you should know", Botan cast a sideways glance at Hotaru, who ignored it point blankly.
"Anyway, there's one more thing to explain. Makai has a government that is ruled by three rulers. They each govern one part of Makai, but something happened about a thousand years ago and Makai went under war. It's been dark times, Hotaru-san. Killings and murders are just normal everyday happenings in Makai. You can understand how gloomy that place is now", Botan shuddered at the thought. "Koenma-sama has been trying to calm the three rulers down and stop the war, but he has failed for the time being. For all we know, we may never succeed, but Koenma-sama is always willing to try", Botan said, shrugging.
Hotaru could clearly see the pride in Botan's eyes and voice and suddenly realized it. Botan was in love with Koenma, but Koenma was as clueless as any king of the spirit world could be. Hotaru gave herself a secret smile. 'Maybe I can try this matchmaking thing. It seemed fun when Minako-chan tried it!'
"Here you are", Botan said as she reached a certain door and opened it, revealing a small room with straw mats on the floor, the doors like ones from long ago, and even a futon on the floor. Needless to say, the room was pretty bare.
"Don't worry, you can fill the room up once you've settled in", Botan explained, as if reading her mind. Giving Hotaru a knowing smile before stepping into the room, she wondered if she really had done so.
"There are drawers for you to put extra kimonos in. A table over there for you to write, paper and pens already there. Here, we don't use electricity like ningens – "
"Neither do we; at least, not anymore".
" – So you can light that candle, the matches are right beside it, if you want light in the room. We really have no problem if you wish to change the look of the room, so you can do whatever you want with it. Oh, look at the time. I have to return to my duties. My room is just down the hall; you can ask me if you need any help. See you later!" With a wave, Botan exited the room and slid the door closed behind her.
Hotaru blinked, then turned round the room, gazing at the pieces of furniture. The deep dark polished wood gleamed from the flickering candle's light. Smiling in satisfaction, she walked to the middle of the room and took out her broach from the silver chain and slipped it over her head, laying it onto her cupped hands in front of her. Snapping it open, she smiled as she saw the tiny purple flower that lay dormant inside the broach.
Silently, she willed so-called 'dark' power forth and closed her eyes. Power coursed through her veins as it traveled towards the broach. Behind her eyelids, she saw a gleaming light and she opened her eyes.
She was granted with a miraculous site. It never failed to amaze her, although she had seen it many times before. Every time she transformed, actually.
The flower had bloomed beautifully, it's full lush petals opened to their fullest limits. Tiny green lights, though she knew they weren't real fireflies, danced over the flower. And in the center of the flower, a tiny shard of glass was floating, surrounded by a brilliant silver light.
Smiling, she decided to use a bit of magic. After all, she hadn't gone through those tiresome magic lessons for nothing.
Straightening her back and lifting her chin up proudly, she began chanting. She began chanting in the ancient language of Saturn, which had never been lost to her. She spoke in fluently. When she was just a small child, she had learned the language of Saturn and of the Moon, because the language of the moon (which was like singing out phrases or simple words) was the ideal language of the Silver Millennium. Everyone had to learn it. But of course, the planets' own language had to be taught as well, especially to the rightful heir to the throne.
And so she began chanting;
Let the magic fulfill it's light
To leave me a world burning bright
I want my walls a glowing violet
The candles covered with simple lamps
I want this room to be like no other
Except like my own
Let the magic fulfill it's light
To leave me a world, burning bright
I call upon magic, in my own ancient tongue
And let my words be heard and sung
Purple sparkles of magic swirled around the room. Of course, the little poem was unneeded, as all she needed was to concentrate and command, but she always thought that saying it caused more of an effect.
The walls shimmered once, twice, and transformed into a deep purple, seeming glowing all around her. Small coverings unlike the lamps back in her old room two thousand yeas ago covered the candles, creating an unearthly glow in her room. Finally, she added one more touch.
Transform the light of the brightness candle
Take the yellow and create a pure white
Satisfied, as the yellowness of the candles were taken away and replaced by white, she smiled and dropped onto her futon. Well, now that her work was done – and she was proud, she had done all this without feeling the least bit tired – but it didn't hurt to catch some rest.
Sighing, she slipped into the warm blankets and felt the futon's softness. A small smile drifting over her lips, she closed her bright violet eyes and drifted off to sleep.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Sooooo…How did you like it? Was it bad? Awful? Downright horrible? Interesting? Exciting? Please leave some comment and I might be convinced to do a second chapter quicker then you can say, "Hotaru loves Kurama". ^^;;
Hope you enjoyed this chapter, minna-san!
--Ketsuki
Love Through Centuries:
Chapter 1: Starting Over At Reikai
Written by: Ketsuki
Disclaimer: Yu Yu Hakusho does not belong to me, it belongs to other people whom I do not remember nor do I personally know, so I'm not declaring any personal rights to this anime. This story is written solely for entertainment purposes only. And trust me, it is entertainment. And again, Sailor Moon does not belong to me, it belongs the creator and the company who produces it, whatever, I don't care. Just keep in mind it doesn't belong to me at all.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
It was not her day. After a chase down the hall after an oni who had taken one of the important documents she had needed Koenma's signature on it, tripping over sheets of paper in the documents room and banging up her knee pretty good, crawling under her desk for a loose hair pin and smacking her head when she was getting up, and now a mysterious green light was erupting from the middle of her lord's office room. Okay, not exactly mysterious, because she knew what it was, but if it was outsiders, she knew they'd freak almost right away. Yes, definitely not her day.
Sighing tiredly, she waited till the two forms shimmered into view. One had tousled brown hair, dark hazel eyes, dressed in brown trousers, blue cloak like outfit that covered his top and hung front and back, and a blue pacifier dangling from his lips as he removed his hand from hers, before her glance landed on the young girl beside him.
Correction, she thought, a young woman. She had neck length black hair that flowed freely around her face, seeming swirling in an endless black. Her skin as white as ivory, her eyes as brilliant a violet as amethysts, her lips as dark and red as blood. Her face was emotionless, as she donned a sailor like outfit, a skirt that was almost scandalously high and would seem so on some other girl, but this young woman was dressed in it so comfortably she was fit to believe that the outfit was made just for the mysterious person. In the woman's hands, however, was a tall silver staff, a moon shaped blade on top glimmered slightly in the fluorescent lights, and she couldn't help but shiver and imagine that blade coming down on someone who deserved it. For it seemed that the staff was not misused, it's blade gleaming.
She, herself, bowed in front of her lord but couldn't help eyeing the woman warily. These were dark times, after all, and they were not yet over. She did not trust strangers as easily as she had almost a thousand years ago.
"Stand up, Botan-chan, you know there's no reason to bow", the young man said, rubbing his eyes tiredly as he sighed, walking to his chair and practically plopped down onto it. With a poof, the young man had disappeared and reappeared was a young child, barely 4 years of age, extremely chubby wearing just about the same thing except there was a giant hat on his head that she, his ferry girl, thought would envelope his head if he wasn't careful about moving his head around.
"I know, but still. I've been doing that since I've came here, you know it's become a habit. Besides, we have more important things to discuss, Koenma-sama. How did the meeting with Neo Queen Serenity go?" she asked curiously, cocking her head to the side. At the corner of her eye, she saw the woman glance at her and she shivered, a chill running down her spine at her intense yet broken look.
He allowed her a tiny smile, full of exhaustion. "Fine, just fine. She rules Ningenkai well. It is hard to imagine that we have watched her since she was fourteen and when her life took a turn for the better", he said.
Botan grinned. She should know. She was one of the ferry girls who had been sent to watch tiny Tsukino Usagi, and she had loved her like a little sister. It was hard to imagine young childish Usagi was now the ruler of Ningenkai, the kind and gentle yet powerful beyond belief young woman who had sacrificed her teenage years for the dreams of all the people, in all three worlds.
"However, she told me that Ningenkai is in trouble, something dealing with the past, present, and future that is too complicated for even us to comprehend. Therefore, she has sent a young trained warrior to hide out here, in case anything goes beyond their control and she is needed. Saturn, this Botan. Botan, Saturn", Koenma said, nodding to both of them.
Smiling, practically with relief that the woman was not an enemy, she bowed to the girl as a sign of greeting and respect. If she was powerful enough to be considered as a back up plan by Neo Queen Serenity, she was certainly trustworthy.
The young woman smiled and she didn't look half as tense and angry as before. 'Perhaps a smile is just what Saturn needs'.
"I'd prefer if you not call me Saturn, but Hotaru. Neo Queen Serenity informed me that I should be going undercover – or perhaps that's not the proper word, disguised would be more like it, as a ferry girl. I'm not sure what that concept is, but I do hope to learn from you, Botan-san", the girl bowed the same way as Botan.
"Botan will explain everything to you, Hotaru-san. Botan, can you find an appropriate ferry girl uniform for her? In a few days, you and Hotaru-san shall accompany me to a diplomatic meeting with the three rulers of Makai", Koenma said.
Botan's eyes widened. "Rulers of Makai? De-demo Koenma-sama, you-you know Makai is at war with each other, all because of them! They're not who they used to be anymore!"
"I am quite informed of that, Botan-chan, therefore I am going to try to settle the differences between them. You two will help try not to evoke them to start a fight, which is what happens nearly all the time I've been there. This time, I'm trying to settle it for good. Too many has died in this war to let it go on", Koenma said firmly, shaking his head a bit. It looked rather strange to see a child doing such a grown up gesture.
Botan sighed in defeat, as she rubbed her temple with both her hands. "Hai hai, Koenma-sama. I will do as such. Come on, Hotaru, I'll show you to your temporary quarters and have you measured for your new uniform", she said, leaving Hotaru out of Koenma's office room.
"I hope this is a good idea, or else all our planning may go down the drain, Serenity-san…Let's just hope Hotaru and him manages to take some time off trying to act cold and be warm…For once", Koenma said to himself as he stood up to pace on the floor of his office room, just as he had done years ago.
Old habits die hard.
~*~*~*~
"Hmmm…Okay, done. Here, Hotaru-san, put this on!" Botan threw out a simple version of a kimono, though not half as difficult to put on. It was just a simple robe like outfit with an obi to tie it up.
Blinking, Hotaru picked up the robe and stared at it. The robe was rather simple, gold embroidering the edges of the dark purple robe, with twin golden dragons that were sown on delicately but not very detailed, that intertwined around the skirt like part of the robe, their heads resting on her shoulders. She saw it strange for a ferrygirl to be dressed with dragons on their clothing, but she wasn't one to complain. Heck, Botan's had little flower petals all over it. The obi was a simple black, and could be easily tied in the back. Brushing a hand over her brooch, making sure Botan was turned, her senshi outfit disappeared and she quickly slipped into the robe, tying the obi tightly around her waist. Her brooch was then attached to a silver chain and she hung it around her neck, safely hidden from view by the collar of the robe. Glancing at the pair of sandals or whatever they were Botan was about to take out, made Hotaru cringe and with a mere thought, her lace up boots from her senshi uniform appeared, matching the robe perfectly.
"Ah, Botan-san, I'll just wear my boots. I'm…not used to wearing those sort of shoes", Hotaru said, smiling hesitantly.
Smiling brilliantly, Botan practically threw the shoes back in. "Good. I hate these shoes, but we don't have a choice. I wouldn't wish these shoes on anyone, not even my worst enemy", she said, giggling as she shut the closet door.
Hotaru smiled, but inside, she sighed. This was a new life, a new part of life she had to go through. 'Oh, Usagi-hime, please come back safe and sound and get me out of here! Not that I hate it…But I don't want to leave Crystal Tokyo and everyone else…I-I don't want to go through this!'
Biting her lip as a constricting pain was felt in her chest, she tried to hold back the tears as she held out her hand and her glaive appeared, seemingly from thin air. She took a deep breath and smiled at Botan. 'Iie…I must be brave. Not that everyone is counting on me, but I'm counting on myself to make it through this. Doesn't matter that I'm going to another world in a few days with my so-called cousin's descendent and another ferrygirl who giggles and acts like Usagi-hime (not necessarily an insult), I'll be heading to a world with too many bad reputations; Makai, World of demons. Wait…That's not a bad thing…I can fend them off no problem…I don't know what I'm worried about anymore'
Shaking her head, she let Botan lead her out of the room and down the hall towards Hotaru's own room. "Okay, Hotaru-san, I'll tell you all you need to know. First of all, ferrygirls are women who's job is to guide souls to where they belong, either to Makai or Reikai. And if you're wondering about the gender thing, I don't know. There's never been a ferryboy before. There once was a Meikai, but it was banished eons ago, so you shouldn't have to worry about that. Now let's see…You're going to have to purchase an oar to ride on during your guides – "
"My glaive will do fine, Botan-san", Hotaru interrupted, feeling a bit foolish. She had battled for her life and used her ultimate world destruction power with her glaive, but now she was going to use it to fly? But no way in all three worlds was she going to ride on an oar. Not a chance.
Botan blinked and frowned uncertainly, then nodded and went back to chattering. "I suppose that's alright. Anyway, you're to listen to Koenma-sama, and only him, because he's the one who commands the oni and ferrygirls around here – "
"Oni?"
"Giant buggers who don't know left from right", Botan said, barely batting an eye as a large bulking creature walked down the hall clumsily, piled down from mountains of paperwork.
Hotaru blinked. "Oh…I see".
"Anyway, in a few days, we'll be heading to Makai. Makai is a world of demons, all kinds of'em. Fire demons, ice demons, water demons, or classified ones; sirens, werewolves, vampires, sorceresses/sorcerers, and so on…Oh wait…Kitsune as well…" Botan said, after only a second of hesitation.
Hotaru halted, her eyes wide. She turned to Botan. "Kitsune?" she asked incredulously.
Botan blinked at her surprise, then she nodded. "Hai, kitsune", she confirmed.
The black haired girl turned away and continued to walk as Botan chattered on and on about this and that. 'Hmmm…I wonder if this Makai is the same one Kuronue told me years ago…' A long time ago, she was taught never to get her hopes up too high. As they say, 'the higher you go, the harder you fall'.
"Anyway, we'll be going to Makai in a week. Ano…What else? Oh yes, the rules. In Reikai, ferrygirls have only two rules. Never appear to ningen because of personal matters, and two, never fall in love. Both are absolutely forbidden. Unless you have an order to appear before a ningen because of a special matter, then you cannot be visible to anyone but people of Reikai and Makai. Obviously, falling in love is not allowed. It's a really important rule too, as you should know", Botan cast a sideways glance at Hotaru, who ignored it point blankly.
"Anyway, there's one more thing to explain. Makai has a government that is ruled by three rulers. They each govern one part of Makai, but something happened about a thousand years ago and Makai went under war. It's been dark times, Hotaru-san. Killings and murders are just normal everyday happenings in Makai. You can understand how gloomy that place is now", Botan shuddered at the thought. "Koenma-sama has been trying to calm the three rulers down and stop the war, but he has failed for the time being. For all we know, we may never succeed, but Koenma-sama is always willing to try", Botan said, shrugging.
Hotaru could clearly see the pride in Botan's eyes and voice and suddenly realized it. Botan was in love with Koenma, but Koenma was as clueless as any king of the spirit world could be. Hotaru gave herself a secret smile. 'Maybe I can try this matchmaking thing. It seemed fun when Minako-chan tried it!'
"Here you are", Botan said as she reached a certain door and opened it, revealing a small room with straw mats on the floor, the doors like ones from long ago, and even a futon on the floor. Needless to say, the room was pretty bare.
"Don't worry, you can fill the room up once you've settled in", Botan explained, as if reading her mind. Giving Hotaru a knowing smile before stepping into the room, she wondered if she really had done so.
"There are drawers for you to put extra kimonos in. A table over there for you to write, paper and pens already there. Here, we don't use electricity like ningens – "
"Neither do we; at least, not anymore".
" – So you can light that candle, the matches are right beside it, if you want light in the room. We really have no problem if you wish to change the look of the room, so you can do whatever you want with it. Oh, look at the time. I have to return to my duties. My room is just down the hall; you can ask me if you need any help. See you later!" With a wave, Botan exited the room and slid the door closed behind her.
Hotaru blinked, then turned round the room, gazing at the pieces of furniture. The deep dark polished wood gleamed from the flickering candle's light. Smiling in satisfaction, she walked to the middle of the room and took out her broach from the silver chain and slipped it over her head, laying it onto her cupped hands in front of her. Snapping it open, she smiled as she saw the tiny purple flower that lay dormant inside the broach.
Silently, she willed so-called 'dark' power forth and closed her eyes. Power coursed through her veins as it traveled towards the broach. Behind her eyelids, she saw a gleaming light and she opened her eyes.
She was granted with a miraculous site. It never failed to amaze her, although she had seen it many times before. Every time she transformed, actually.
The flower had bloomed beautifully, it's full lush petals opened to their fullest limits. Tiny green lights, though she knew they weren't real fireflies, danced over the flower. And in the center of the flower, a tiny shard of glass was floating, surrounded by a brilliant silver light.
Smiling, she decided to use a bit of magic. After all, she hadn't gone through those tiresome magic lessons for nothing.
Straightening her back and lifting her chin up proudly, she began chanting. She began chanting in the ancient language of Saturn, which had never been lost to her. She spoke in fluently. When she was just a small child, she had learned the language of Saturn and of the Moon, because the language of the moon (which was like singing out phrases or simple words) was the ideal language of the Silver Millennium. Everyone had to learn it. But of course, the planets' own language had to be taught as well, especially to the rightful heir to the throne.
And so she began chanting;
Let the magic fulfill it's light
To leave me a world burning bright
I want my walls a glowing violet
The candles covered with simple lamps
I want this room to be like no other
Except like my own
Let the magic fulfill it's light
To leave me a world, burning bright
I call upon magic, in my own ancient tongue
And let my words be heard and sung
Purple sparkles of magic swirled around the room. Of course, the little poem was unneeded, as all she needed was to concentrate and command, but she always thought that saying it caused more of an effect.
The walls shimmered once, twice, and transformed into a deep purple, seeming glowing all around her. Small coverings unlike the lamps back in her old room two thousand yeas ago covered the candles, creating an unearthly glow in her room. Finally, she added one more touch.
Transform the light of the brightness candle
Take the yellow and create a pure white
Satisfied, as the yellowness of the candles were taken away and replaced by white, she smiled and dropped onto her futon. Well, now that her work was done – and she was proud, she had done all this without feeling the least bit tired – but it didn't hurt to catch some rest.
Sighing, she slipped into the warm blankets and felt the futon's softness. A small smile drifting over her lips, she closed her bright violet eyes and drifted off to sleep.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Sooooo…How did you like it? Was it bad? Awful? Downright horrible? Interesting? Exciting? Please leave some comment and I might be convinced to do a second chapter quicker then you can say, "Hotaru loves Kurama". ^^;;
Hope you enjoyed this chapter, minna-san!
--Ketsuki