Disclaimer: Me no own Yu Yu Hakusho. Me wishes that me owns Hiei, but me does not. Blah. Me has someone muches better! Keehee! (he's not up for stealing, stay away, psycho fangirl. Except me, of course! Heeheeheeheeheehee...... Daisuki, Brad!)
A few punctuation changes, for you people who don't read a lot of fanfics and don't encounter this problem. My computer refuses to let me use underline, italics, or bold print when I'm uploading my fanfics. So, the following changes are hereby put forth.
italics -word/words-
underline words
bold I won't use these much, they count about the same to me as italics....
scene change/change in POV words
speaking (usual) 7 spaces or so... name- "words"
Thinking (usual) 7 spaces or so... name- 'words'
K? k. Fairly simple, no? Sorry for the long explanation, it's probly not needed, but I felt like explaining for ya.
Thanks reviewers! I'm just too busy... or I would mention every one of you! Ja!
Oh, and to all of you evil people wanting fluff and mushyness or whatever.... romantic crap... STOP ASKING! I know that you want fluff. I know that you want hugs and kisses and all that stuff. Yelling at me doesn't help. I'm just timid and slow with tat sort of thing. I said that this story will be Lani/Hiei. It will be Lani/Hiei. I'm just taking my own damn sweet time. Buuuuuuut........ maybe this chapter will make amends? mwuahahahahahahahaha...... you'll just have to read to find out, won't you? (There will be something. I promise.)
(I've been without internet for a week, so I haven't been able to update. Sorry.)
On with the story!!!!!!!!!
Chapter 18
Yusuke- "Wow! This is awesome, Lani! This is more than a restaurant buffet!"
Keiko- "Amazing! It smells wonderful!"
Kurama- "Yes, gorgeous presentation, as usual. Just like in Verferen..."
Koenma- "-ahem- well, yes... erm... It looks great, Lanecia."
Botan- "Yes! Perfecto!" (I hate her.... Sorry Botan lovers... I just do.)
Shuurin- "Yummy food! Me want eat now!"
Lani- "No, Shuurin, you have to say it correctly first. 'I want to eat now, please.'"
Shuurin- "Oh... I want to eats now, pwease."
Lani- "Good girl."
Hiei- "You didn't take this as an opportunity to poison us, did you?"
Lani- "Of course not. You saved me, not to mention you're not annoying. I would never do such a thing to -you-....... On the other hand....."
At that moment, Kuwabara burst into the room, his sister Shizuru walking calmly in his wake.
Kuwabara- "Hey guys! Please tell me that Urameshi didn't eat all the food yet! Shizuru blew up the kitchen trying to cook an----- eep!"
Shizuru had stomped on his head, therefore, Kuwabaka is lying on the floor with the swirly eyes, and his sister's foot on his head.
Shizuru- "Sorry, my little brother decided that he could cut butter with his spirit sword. He obviously has terrible hand-eye coordination. Our kitchen has many holes in it now. So, which one is this 'Lani' that I keep hearing about?"
Lani got up, wiped her hands on her apron, and walked over to Shizuru, shaking her hand, in a rather formal, unpersonal way, business-like.
Lani- "That would be me, Miss. I am Lanecia. It's a pleasure to meet the intelligent sister of Sir Kuwabaka."
Shizuru- "Yeah, and it's nice to meet you. Is the little one Shuurin then? How old is she?"
Shuurin- "I is..... I am five! How old are you, lady?"
Lani- "Shuurin! First of all, you would probably say 'miss' instead of 'lady'. Second, it isn't very polite to ask a woman's age unless she is your age, or at least close to that. Okay?"
Shuurin- "hai! It's nice to meet you, miss!"
Shizuru- "It's very nice to meet you too... Shuurin-chan."
Kuwabara- "So, is there any food left?"
Lanecia- "yes, there is. Thankfully, I suppose, we have yet to start eating."
Kurama- "But, didn't you only cook for ten?"
Lanecia- "Of course not. One should always expect unexpected guests. Therefore, even if no one else arrives, no one is timid to take a large portion. Plenty to go around. Or, there's leftovers."
Keiko- "Wow... at least -someone- has manners....."
Yusuke- "What???!!!!! What now, Keiko?"
Keiko- "Oh, nothing... just that you're a MORON!"
Yusuke- "I can't just say -sorry- anymore, can I?!!!"
Kurama- "Hey, wait... please calm down now... You'll upset the table, Yusuke, then you'll lose all of the food. Then Lani will hurt you."
Yusuke- "Oh... sorry."
Shuurin- "Ca--- may we eats now?"
Lani- "Yes, we may eat now. Please sit down, Shuurin."
Shuurin- "Yes ma'am!"
Okay, the seating arrangement sort of goes as follows... if this is at all helpful or worth anything.... which it isn't, just pointless imagery, neh? Okay, here I go, and where I stop, only I knows! Heehee. Sorry. Going! Warning, this may be confusing.
It was a traditional Japanese table, rectangle, low to the ground with cushions for seats... you know, whatever. It's Genkai. Genkai sat at one end, with Koenma on the other end, facing her. Lani seated herself on Genkai's left, followed by Shuurin. Shuurin pulled Hiei next to her (Shuurin's left), and Kurama sat beside Hiei. Botan seated herself next to Kurama, therefore to the right of Koenma on the other end. Shizuru was on Koenma's other side (other side of the table now, people), and next to her was Kuwabara. Yukina sat down next to him, and across from Hiei. Keiko was next to Yukina (left side) and Yusuke was next to her, and to the right of Genkai (who's still on the end).
Yusuke- "Can we eat now?"
Shuurin- "-May- we eats now."
Keiko- "You know that you need to go to school more when five-year-olds are correcting your language, Yusuke."
Yusuke- "Whatever! -May- we eat?"
Lani- "You're not three. You don't need permission every time you want to do something. I thought that you knew that. You certainly take advantage of it enough."
Yusuke- "I can eat then?"
Hiei- "Yes, moron, you can eat, and you may eat. Just shut up."
Sadly, Yusuke had already stuffed his mouth full of food, and couldn't talk even if he wanted to. Everyone else pretty much took that as the sign that they could start eating. Kuwabara stuffed mass quantities into his huge mouth, he seemed to get into a contest with Yusuke over how much food could fit in their mouths... Moving on... Yukina ate daintily between giggles at Kuwabara's antics, Keiko, Genkai, Koenma, Shizuru, and Kurama ate normally (thank god). Lani ate tiny portions in between correcting Shuurin's manners. Shuurin ate like a usual five-year-old, though. Except, she restrained herself from using her hands. Hiei used his speed to take small, fast, nearly invisible bites, attempting to retain his reputation as someone who doesn't care, even though... yes... he thought that the food was excellent.
Eventually, the entire group had finished. Not that the food was gone, mind you, there was still plenty left for one of Yusuke's midnight snacks or something, but they were all full. This, of course, was at nine o'clock in the evening, after the appetizers, entrees, and desserts. Yusuke and Kuwabara had passed out at the table (Yusuke won the food stuffing contest.), while Genkai, Koenma, and Kurama were carrying on a conversation in a quieter room. Shizuru and Keiko had already left, walking home. Botan had returned to her usual work in Spirit World and Lani had left the room to put Shuurin to bed. Yukina had volunteered to start cleaning up, Lani joining her later. Hiei had left the room also. He was outside, of course, sitting on a high branch of a gigantic oak tree. He was watching a window. Actually, looking in a window. He gazed in quietly as Lani tucked an already sleeping Shuurin into the child's bed. (Get your minds out of the gutters, people.)
Hiei sat in that tree long after Lanecia had left the room. He puzzled over an unknown emotion that was now nearly constantly tugging at his mind everytime he saw little Shuurin.
Hiei- 'What is it? Longing? Happiness? Everytime that I hear her say "Onii-chan"... is that what I want? Me? -The- Hiei Jaganshi? I know that I want to hear those words, but not exactly from her... I want to hear them from Yukina... but I can't tell her. She can't know that she has an evil, murdering criminal for a brother... but.... there's something more than that. It's not just that. Maybe... that little half-breed has everything that I've ever wanted... No one ever looked after me like that...
'What I'm feeling, is it guilt? That I took the only person that was a family figure away from that child? Maybe... but... I don't know... I'm such a child, aren't I? I'm going soft here. A tiny, day-long trip to Verfaren is all they've allowed me in such a long time... Koenma absolutely refuses to allow me a trip to the real Makai... heh, he's afraid that I'll turn evil on him again, isn't he... keh, it'd be so easy... but then he'd send the Detective after me. Whatever. I hate this. I hate this world. I hate humans. I hate this damned emotion! ....................................... hn. I'm going to sleep."
And he fell asleep right there.
And he was woken up in the middle of the night by a rather shrill scream.
And Hiei promptly fell out of the tree.
Hiei- "What the hell?!!!"
The scream had come from the very room by which his tree was located: Shuurin's room. Hiei realized this -very- quickly, and was through her window and in her room before one could blink an eye. Shuurin was sitting up in her bed, eyes wide and tears flowing out of them.
Hiei- "Hey! What's wrong?" 'She doesn't look injured or anything, did she just have a bad dream?'
Shuurin- "Onee-tan! Where's Onee-tan! Onii-tan! Save Onee-tan!"
Hiei- "What? Lani? What happened to Lanecia?"
Lani- "What's wrong? Nothing happened to me." She was standing in the doorway looking puzzled. She was wearing a dark blue tee-shirt with black pajama pants, she had obviously just gotten up.
Shuurin- "Onee-tan! You're okay!!!!"
Lani- "Of course I'm alright, Shuurin... what would make you think that I wouldn't be?"
Shuurin- 'I... I had a bad dream... You... you.... You stopped moving! I don't want you to leave again, Onee-tan!!!!" Shuurin ran up to the white haired girl and hugged her as tightly as the child's small body could allow. "I won't let you leave again!" Lani simply stood there with a pained, far-away look in her eyes, not saying a word, but softly hugging Shuurin back. Soon enough, Shuurin was calm and sleeping again. Lani and Hiei crept out of the room. Lanecia walked down to the kitchen, Hiei following.
Hiei- "Why didn't you talk to her?"
Lani- "Hm?"
Hiei- "Why didn't you tell her something? Such as, 'No one lives forever', or 'sure, I'l be here forever'."
Lani- "Well, that's not exactly true. Neither of them. And I refuse to lie to her. Koenma will live forever if nothing happens to him. And I know that I won't be here forever. I know that my time is quite limited."
Hiei- "Do you know exactly how much time you have left?"
Lani- "A very basic idea."
Hiei- "Feel like sharing?"
Lani- "Oh, Hiei. I didn't think you cared."
Hiei- "Hn. I don't, onna."
Lani- Of course not. I'm thinking... around two to three years. That is, if Koenma doesn't find a cure or anything, and nothing disastrous happens to me. That should be enough time for me to tell Shuurin. And for her to understand."
Hiei- "She'll still be unhappy."
Lani- "Of course she will. Everyone's unhappy when they lose something that they cannot get back. It's a fact of life. There's nothing you can do about it."
Hiei- "Other people will be unhappy."
Lani- "Like who? Jin? Touya? Yusuke and Kuwabara might miss my cooking. But who else? You?"
Hiei- ".............. I might......."
Lani- "What?"
Hiei- "............. I would miss you."
Lani- "..... Thank you, Hiei......."
Hiei- "................."
Lani- "Well then. So long as we're in the kitchen.... would you like some sweet snow?"
Hiei- "You have some?"
Lani- "I asked Yukina to get some."
Hiei- "Oh........ sure. I'll take some."
Lani got out a carton/box/thing of vanilla ice cream, and scooped some out into two bowls. Then she tossed some milk chocolate into a bowl and handed it to Hiei.
Hiei- "And what am I supposed to do with this?"
Lani- "Melt it, if you would be so kind. And try not to burn it. You're a fire demon aren't you? Melting a little bit of chocolate should be no problem. Right?"
Hiei- "Hn."
Hiei quickly melted the chocolate and handed the warm bowl back to Lani. She drizzled a little bit of it over each bowl of ice cream. Then, before it cooled and hardened completely, she placed a large merichino (sp?) cherry on the top. Then Lani took out two spoons, and handed one of them and a bowl to Hiei. He immediately started eating. Lani let out a soft giggle and then began to eat as well. Hiei finished first (no surprises there), and tried to hand the bowl back to Lani.
Lani- "Don't give it to me. Put it in the sink, please Hiei."
Hiei appeared next to the sink, glared at Lani, and dropped the bowl in.
Lani- "You break bowls that way, Hiei."
Hiei- "Whatever, onna. Do I look like Shuurin? Don't mother me."
Lani- "Oh, but your manners are atrocious, Hiei. I fI don't teach you proper ningen manners, who will? Yusuke? Heaven forbid."
Hiei- "You're being sarcastic again."
Lani- "Of course I am. Why shouldn't I be? Joking aside, you manners might be acceptable in the Makai..."
Hiei- "Stupid ningens can deal with it."
Lani- "You would say something like that, wouldn't you...."
Hiei- "Hn."
Lani- "That was expectable. Anyway, before you 'hn' me again, what's up with you and Yukina?"
Hiei- "What? What did that fox tell you?!"
Lani- "So, Kurama knows too? No, he didn't tell me anything. No, neither did Yusuke or Koenma or Botan. I figured it out on my own, thank you."
Hiei- "And how did you do that?"
Lani- "One: you're always really uncomfortable around her. Two: when I mentioned Yukina, you got really quiet and secluded. Three: when Yukina mentioned looking for her lost brother earlier, you got a really screwed up looking facial expression. Four: you pretty much flinch every time Shuurin calls you 'Onii-tan', and then you glance at Yukina. Five: the two of you almost look alike. Same color eyes, same hight, etceteras..."
Hiei- "Oh, thanks."
Lani- "You're quite welcome. Now, are you refusing to tell her that you're the brother she keeps futilely searching for, so she can stop and live her life because you think that she'll hate you? You're not a criminal anymore. She never knew you when you were a criminal. She stands Kuwabara and she's said that she thinks you're a good person. She can't hate you. I don't think that she can hate anyone. She certainly wouldn't hate her brother."
Hiei- ".................."
Lani- "Think about it, Hiei. It's just another person's viewpoint."
Hiei- "........ thanks..... Lanecia........"
Lani- "A favor repaid Hiei, you owe me no thanks at all. Oh, and, it's Princess Lani to you."
Hiei- "Princess?"
Lani- "Of course. Don't you remember?"
Hiei- "Of course I do. But I thought that you weren't a princess anymore..."
Lani- "Technically I'm not. But, I never could give up my love for fine cuisine and presentation. Not to mention my nit-picking about people's speech and manners."
Hiei- "That's obvious."
Lani- "Oh, thank you for noticing, Hiei."
Hiei- "Hn." She smiled gently at him.
Lani- "Anyway... Thank you."
Hiei- "For what now, onna?"
Lani- "I choose not to have heard that. I thank you for helping Shuurin. I suppose you were sleeping in that tree outside her open window?"
Hiei- "You knew, then?"
Lani- "I'm not the pathetic weakling that I seem to be, Jaganshi. Don't underestimate me. I can sense you."
Hiei- "......."
Lani- "Whatever. Fine then, don't say anything. By the way, Keiko, Botan, and your... oh sorry, -Yukina-, are taking me shopping tomorrow. They seem to think that since I'm going to live in the human world, I should dress like humans. Morons. And I'm not supposed to live -here- either. I'm supposed to buy a house in town."
Hiei- "Why?"
Lani- "Koenma's orders. 'The little half-human has to go to human school'. Whatever. Koenma's buying, so what do I care. He's even sending someone, Ayame, that other ferry girl, out house-hunting. Oh well. At least he's not making -me- go to school. I don't know why Kurama even bothers. Whatever. Anythings better than being confined in that castle with Varien. Bastard. I hope he's dead."
Hiei- ".........."
Lani- "Well, 'hn' to you too. Well then, I'm going to turn in. Let's hope that Shuurin doesn't have any more nightmares, eh?"
Hiei- "................"
Lani- "Well then, Mister Antisocial, I hope that you think about what I said. About a certain Koorime."
Hiei- "....... thank you. For trying to help me. Not many people do."
Lani- "Well then, I suppose that it's about time they start. Someone has to be able to see past the evil 'I shall kill you, you stupid filthy ningen you' Hiei, and start seeing, in tiny measures, of course, the not so evil, quiet big brother Hiei."
Hiei- "Don't bet on it."
Lani- "Ah, but I plan to."
Hiei- "Thank you, anyway. It seems that you're not surrounded by people that understand you either."
Lani- "Good night, Hiei."
Hiei- "Yeah..."
Lanecia smiled gently and quietly walked back to her room. Hiei watched her go, quietly.
Hiei- 'She..... she's so like her..... Like little princess Kira...... and yet, so different... I don't know what to think anymore.....'
Hiei retreated to his new tree outside Shuurin's room.
Meanwhile
A tall, dark, cloaked figure walked through a tiny portal to the Ningenkai, and was currently standing outside Tokyo, Japan. He grinned maniacally, and glared at the glowing town. he slowly removed his hood to reveal dark brown hair and dark, narrow eyes.
Varien- "So, Lanecia... this is where you've been hiding....."
A/N: Dum dum dum!!!!!!!! Blah! The end! At least, the end of the chapter. Was it long enough for you people???!!! Well.... not much fluff, well, pretty much no fluff in this chapter. Sorry, but I couldn't set it up. Gomen nasai!!!!!! Well, it's 6 am now, so I've got to be going, and updating for you wonderful people! Ja ne!
Yuffie Kisaragi, materiathief06
