Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction / Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Is This For Real...? ❯ Chapter One ( Chapter 2 )

Disclaimer: Once again, I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho, nor do I own the song “Teardrops On My Guitar.” The Keeper's Chronicles belongs to Tanya Huff, and I highly recommend all three novels in that series! I do own the original character, Kimi Ichisaigosuki. Please don't steal from me and we'll get along fine.

 

These quotation marks ' ' and/or italics mean that the character is thinking.

 

To Methos: Thank you very much for your review! I hope that you enjoy the rest of the story as much as you enjoyed the prologue.

 

Chapter One

 

~*~*~*~

 

“All passengers please fasten your seatbelts. We are about to land in Tokyo, Japan. The local time is ten A.M.”

 

Kimi leaned back in her chair and sighed in content. She was finally in Japan, the place she had always dreamed of visiting. Her friends were more than a little envious, and she had had to pry herself away from the group hug her friends had insisted upon. Everybody had come to see her off: Midori, Yukiko, Tsuki, Karu, and Linda. Linda was actually a boy, but Midori insisted on calling him “Linda D. Cupcake,” much to his chagrin. Suddenly a wave of exhaustion passed over her. Her last thought before falling asleep was `This is too sudden to be jet lag…'

 

“Miss? Miss? Please wake up, you're the last passenger onboard!”

 

“Eh?!” Kimi shot up, banging her head against the overhead luggage rack. “Ow…”

 

“Miss, are you all right?”

 

“Yeah. Gomen nasai. I didn't mean to fall asleep.”

 

“No, no. It's fine. It happens all the time to people when they first arrive in Japan.”

 

Kimi thanked the flight attendant, gathered her things, and hurried off the plane. She scanned the crowd for Suuichi, who had left a note in the introduction packet saying that he would be looking for her in the arrivals area. Suddenly she was tapped on the shoulder.

 

“Are you Kimi Ichisaigosuki?”

 

She turned around. “Yeah, that's my na—oh my Gods!” She stared at the person standing in front of her, and not without good reason. It was Kurama from Yu Yu Hakusho.

 

“You're…you're-!”

 

“I am Suuichi Minamino. It's a pleasure to be the first person to meet our American exchange student.”

 

“Um, it's a pleasure to meet you too.”

 

Kimi and Suuichi bowed to each other, both slightly unsure about how to continue their conversation. “Let's go get your luggage.”

 

The fourteen-year-old girl nodded, grateful for the chance to just walk and adjust to this bizarre twist in her trip.

 

“Your name is interesting, by the way.”

 

So much for not having to talk. “How so?”

 

“It's Japanese, but you are quite obviously a Hispanic/Caucasian mix with several other miscellaneous ethnicities thrown into the gene pool. And your last name is three Japanese words strung together into one.”

 

“Hm. That's very perceptive. You're the first person that's noticed the more unusual aspect of my last name. I have to explain it to everybody else. The name Ichisaigosuki means `one last chance.' Ichi-one. Saigo-last. Suki-chance. Ichi-saigo-suki. I don't know why that's my last name, but it coincides strangely with my first name. `She who is without equal.' It implies quite a few things about my destiny.”

 

“Oh?” Suuichi smiled slightly. The girl possessed an out-of-the-ordinary personality.

 

“Yeah. Think about it: `She who is without equal' and `One last chance.' It makes me feel like it's my fate and responsibility to save the world.”

 

His smile turned into a frown. Perhaps there was more to her than met the eye. But then, wasn't that always the case? He helped Kimi unload her bags from the luggage claim. The first surprise that she gave him was when she easily lifted a suitcase that was too heavy for him to drag over the metal lip of the machine. “How did you…?”

 

“I like to stay in shape.”

 

Forced to make do with that vague answer, Suuichi grabbed the last bag that belonged to his unusual guest. “Let's go. My mother is waiting for us in the parking lot.”

 

“Okay. Thanks for helping me with my stuff Kuram—Suuichi.”

 

“Excuse me? I didn't quite hear you.”

 

“It was nothing. Just forget it.”

 

He blinked at the sudden change in Kimi's demeanor, then shrugged it off. He couldn't stop thinking about what she had almost called him, though. `I think that she was about to call me Kurama…' The car ride home passed quickly as Shiori, who was Suuichi's mother, Suuichi, and Kimi talked about the differences between Japan and America. Arriving at the Minamino house, Kimi stopped just before the threshold. Suuichi noticed this and walked up to stand beside her. She was staring at the tree just outside his window.

 

“Kimi?” The girl snapped out of the trance-like state she had been in.

 

“Somebody's in that tree. He wants to talk to you.”

 

“How do you-?”

 

“Suuichi! Kimi! Hurry inside: dinner's on the table!”

 

“Coming!” The two teenagers yelled at the same time.

 

~*~*~*~

 

After dinner Kimi thumped up the stairs to her room to get settled in while Suuichi followed at a more sedate pace. Opening the door to his room he was in no way surprised to see Hiei sitting on his windowsill looking slightly annoyed.

 

“Took you long enough, Kurama. Who's the girl?”

 

“The exchange student from America.”

 

“She knew that I was here. How?”

 

“I don't know. I can't sense anything extraordinary from her…. Hiei, her name disturbs me. It is unique in its own way, but I'm not sure that I like how it is unique.”

 

“Unique? What do you mean?”

 

Before Kurama could answer, he and the fire demon heard faint music coming from Kimi's room.

 

Drew looks at me, I fake a smile so he won't see

That I want and I'm needing everything that we should be

I'll bet she's beautiful, that girl he talks about

And she's got everything that I have to live without!

The fire demon frowned in the general direction of Kimi's room. “The words are in English. She must've brought her music CDs with her.” He smirked, obviously up to something. Kurama felt a sudden weight that was suspiciously reminiscent of foreboding settle in his stomach. “I think that I want to meet her. If she can sense that I'm waiting for you, she must be extremely clairvoyant.”

 

“Hiei, we both know that what you are proposing to do is not only dangerous, but it is also very likely to scar her psyche.”

 

Hiei raised an eyebrow.

 

“…Very well. At least allow me to warn her that she's going to be having a guest.”

 

“You have five minutes.”

 

“Impatient as always.” Walking over to Kimi's room, Kurama knocked on the door. “Kimi? May I come in?”

 

“Sure.”

 

The kitsune opened the door and blinked when he saw Kimi sitting at the desk typing on a computer that hadn't been there before. “Where did you get a computer?”

 

Kimi gestured towards one of the many bags that were lying on the bed. “I brought mine with me.”

 

“I see. If it's all right with you, one of my friends would like to-”

 

“Meet me?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Is this the same friend who was sitting in the tree outside of your window?”

 

“…Yes.”

 

`So Hiei wants to meet me. Why did I indicate that I knew that he was there?' “Okay. Show him in.”

 

“I am in.”

 

Kurama gave Kimi credit for not screaming. Few people could take in their stride the sudden and unexpected appearance of a teenager in their room.

 

“What's your name?”

 

“Ichisaigosuki Kimi.”

 

Hiei was very still for a moment before sitting on the corner of the desk. “Unusual name.”

 

Icy dignity radiated from the girl, who suddenly resembled a coolly irritated dragon. “I have given my name. Courtesy dictates that you should give yours.”

 

“Smart one, aren't you? My name is Hiei.”

 

“My, you speak English well. Where'd you learn?”

 

“I taught myself. Reading helped.”

 

“What's your favorite book series that's in English?”

 

“What does that have to with anything?”

 

“Just curious.”

 

“The Keeper's Chronicles by Tanya Huff.”

 

“Which ones have you read?”

 

“The first two.”

 

“I own the third. You can borrow it if you want.”

 

After Kimi had retrieved the novel and Hiei had put it in a hidden pocket in his cloak, the girl asked Hiei a question that caught the two males in her room off guard.

 

“Are you a demon?”

 

“Why would you think that?”

 

“Your aura. And the fact that you're not even making an attempt at subtlety while trying force your way into my mind.”

 

“Humans can be telepathic.”

 

“Forgive me for not thinking that you're a Shinto priest, Hiei.”

 

“Hn.” The fire demon disappeared.

 

“Don't pay him any mind. He's always like that.”

 

“Is he a demon?”

 

Kurama's dismissing smile somehow screamed out the words, `I am not at liberty to answer that question.'

 

Kimi sighed. Well, her suspicions were confirmed, at least. “Mm-hm. I think that we could both use some sleep. I'm going to finish this e-mail to my friends in the states and go to bed. Today was Friday, right?”

 

“Yes. There's no school tomorrow.”

 

“Thank the Kami for small favors.”

 

“Good night.”

 

“Night.”

 

Kimi resumed her busy tapping on the keyboard. Her e-mail was short and to the point:

 

Hey guys; this is Kimi. While I did arrive safely in Japan, several interesting things have come up. I seem to be in the YYH dimension. If you don't believe me, think about who I happen to be staying with: Suuichi Minamino. He looks exactly like Kurama. I also just met Hiei. He's slightly taller than he looks in the anime, but he acts the same. And guess what the name of Suuichi's mother is? Shiori.

 

That's all for now, so I'm going to go bed. Please respond A.S.A.P.

-Kimi

 

The teenager leaned back in her chair and quickly scanned her e-mail. `Looks like everything's there. I'd better send this.'

 

After powering down the computer, turning off her CD player, and taking a quick shower, Kimi slipped into bed. She had brushed her teeth right after dinner. She fell easily into sleep, partly because of jet lag, and partly because of the lag caused by traveling between dimensions. Now there was no way she was normal, if she had ever been ordinary to begin with.

 

She didn't notice a certain black-clad figure sitting in the tree outside of her window. It was the same tree that was in front of Kurama's window. The plant was situated between the two rooms and its branches stretched out to give easy access to both windows.

 

`Perfect location. Well, there are no coincidences,' Hiei thought as he watched Kurama's guest fall asleep. `I should probably tell Koenma about this new development.' The fire demon melted into the darkness of the night.

 

~*~*~*~

Ack…lots of dialogue…sorry about that. Please review!