Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ My Crimson Eyed Angel ❯ Deep Within My Heart ( Chapter 2 )

Chapter Two: Deep Within my Heart



The sunlight drifted through Misako's window, bits of dust floating in an ocean of gold heat. The birds twittered light-heartedly on the lithe branches of the tree. Their pleasant voices called Misako from her place of sleep. Her frail little body sat up. Misako smiled as she rubbed her eyes subconsciously, and reveled in the warmth of the morning sun. She stretched her limbs and yawned as she slipped on her fuzzy blue slippers.

"Hello birds. It's nice this morning isn't it?" She asked smiling as she opened the window and watched them chatter about themselves and sing in intervals. Misako gazed out at the city, at the people busying themselves with the day's trials and tasks. "Don't you just love the sky? It's such a pretty blue."

The birds chirped in response, turning around and hopping from branch to branch. Then one by one they flew away, perhaps to visit someone else on such a lovely morning. Misako waved good-naturedly at them, "Good-bye! Come back soon!" She giggled, as the last one trailed off into the distance and out of sight. Misako sighed as she let the wind caress her face and play with her long strands of hair.

"Oh no..." Misako's eyes had rested on her alarm clock, and it was already 11:32 A.M. "I'm late for school...but why didn't Daddy wake me up?" She quickly ran out of her room, leaving her window open, and the curtains blowing softly in the cool breeze.

She stepped softly in the hallway, tiptoeing silently, as if afraid of what commotion a sound may create. Her eyes fell on the solid wood door, the gateway to her father's bedroom. Her pace slowed even more as she approached the door that she had come to so often before. Instead of whipping the door open as other children might, Misako put her ear to the door. She strained to hear some hint of sound, the slow intakes of breath, water running in the shower or the sink, but all she heard was the mellow ticking of the clock over and over again.

Gradually, Misako inched the door open, bit by bit. It didn't even make the usual creak when opened before. She was horrified at what she saw. The bed was a mess, the blanket had been pulled all the way across the room and the pillows were strewn about haphazardly. Old cardboard boxes that were on the brink of falling apart had been taken down from the closet, creating a considerable amount of room compared to when they were hidden there before. The phone had fallen off the dresser, its fall broken by a pile of dirty clothes. The windows were closed and the curtains drawn, blue tinted light sprayed across the madness of her father's room.

Misako began to panic, and she streaked out of the room, her tears landing on a pair of unnoticed papers. In her haste to escape from the chaos that was her father's room, she missed the pair of airline tickets to a place she had never heard of and never thought she would go.

"Daddy? Hello, Daddy? Are you home?" She glided down the steps, tears falling down her face as she screamed in terror.

"Misako-chan? I'm here sweetie; don't worry. I'm in the dining room." Mr. Tarukano called out, his voice making its way through the barrier of walls and Misako's anxious cries.



Misako stopped at the doorway of the dining room and looked at her father with relief, tearstains were still on her face, the signs of her distress. "Daddy! I didn't know where you were! I was so afraid...I thought you had left me or someone had taken you..." She jumped into his arms and hugged him fiercely.



He stroked her hair gently, "Misako-chan, I would never leave you never in a million years." He pulled her out of her hug and made her look at him. "I don't want you to ever think I would leave you." Misako nodded in response. Her father looked away and stared at the patterns of the tablecloth.



"Daddy, what's wrong?" Misako asked with worry in her voice.



"I-I think I saw something last night." Mr. Tarukano spit out hurriedly, but just slow enough for Misako to understand. He immediately regretted saying it.



Misako studied her father's eyes, "...You saw him didn't you? You saw my angel, Hiei."



Her father began to study the tablecloth again, "I don't know what I saw Misako." He stated defiantly, trying to ignore the shock on Misako's face.



"What do you mean you don't know? It was him. I know it was!"



"But how can you know Misako? How do I even know if he's even real? How can you be so sure?"



"Because..." She began slowly. "I can feel it. I saw him. I spoke to him. I just know."



Mr. Tarukano sighed as he took a sip of his water. "Misako, how many people have you told about your...er...angel?"



"Just my a few of my friends."



"And how did they react?" Her father asked, his hands trembling. His voice was almost fearful.



"They laughed. They thought I was joking." Misako's voice had turned dull and flat.



A breath of relief escaped Mr. Tarukano as he smiled. "Good. That's good. "



Misako's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean that's good? They don't believe me. You don't believe me anymore! He's real! Why can't you understand? Why can't you just believe?" Misako's shrill voice rose in her indignation.



"Misako, you're just too young to understand now..." Mr. Tarukano became desperate. *I can't even explain your mother's death yet. How can you understand now? You're so young...*



Misako began to cry again, "I understand fine daddy. You think I'm a liar."



"I do not Misako. I'm just saying...uh, never mind." Mr. Tarukano took his daughter's hands in his own. "Listen, I've decided to take this new job, as chief editor for a very well known paper...so, we have to move Misako-chan. We're going to leave tomorrow on the plane."



"What? You can't do that! It isn't fair. What about my friends? What about Hiei? It's not fair!" With that, Misako detached herself from her father's grasp and raced upstairs.



Mr. Tarukano covered his face with his hands. "This is wonderful..." he said sarcastically. His gaze wandered to a picture of two smiling young adults. It brought tears to his eyes to remember the past, when he and his wife had been happy, when his wife had been alive.



Kyo Tarukano, his wife, had suddenly begun talking of other worlds. She ranted on about monsters with superhuman powers. It happened after she had been attacked and knocked unconscious in an alleyway at night. Kyo claimed she was not attacked by muggers, but by demons. All attempts to make her believe else wise failed miserably. Soon, the neighbors began to talk. Whispers could be heard at all hours, of how the pretty young wife of Mr. Tarukano had suddenly and tragically gone insane. Kyo would yell at the neighbors when the snickered at her as she passed by to take a walk.



It seemed to happen more and more often that she would stop and gaze at a certain spot as if looking at something, or someone. Once, her husband had even caught her holding a conversation with some unseen person. At first she was diagnosed with schizophrenia, but she denied it completely. At night, she would toss and turn, shouting things in her sleep of evil and demons closing in on her.



Then it happened. It was another looming night, and Kyo had decided to take a walk in the park, before her husband Mr. Tarukano came home from work. Her body was found an hour after she had left the house. It was torn and ripped, as if by an animal, but the cuts were almost too precise to have been. She was taken to the hospital, and Mr. Tarukano met her there on her way to the emergency room. Her heartbeats were growing faint, her breath strained and painful. Tears were in her eyes.



"Who did this to you? Why?" Mr. Tarukano sobbed as he held her hand as it began to grow colder; death's grip was tightening.



Kyo coughed, "Them; it was them. I knew too much..." She kissed his hand and her eyes drifted shut. Her body grew colder. The doctors began to shout and more people surged into the hallway, the noise crowded into his memory.



Those were his wife's last words to him, "I knew too much..." He repeated them to himself. He still didn't half believe it, but he would not risk her. He would not risk Misako's life.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ *~*~*~*~*~*~*



Misako rampaged around her room, gathering clothes into a small suitcase. She emptied out her piggy bank; her savings amounted to eleven dollars and thirty-seven cents. She looked into the mirror, noting how her hazel eyes were red and puffy from crying and her hair was a horror to behold. She had yet to brush it. She ran a brush through it recklessly, just to make herself look half ways decent and tossed it into her bag.



Misako heard her father slowly trudge up the stairs and close the door to his room. She waited a few more minutes, cracking open her door so she could listen more easily. As expected, the shower began to run and with that confirmation, Misako quietly snuck out of her room. As she made her way down the steps, she made sure to skip the sixth one for it creaked every time. She left a slip of paper on the kitchen table, and then, without missing a beat she walked out of the door. Only until Misako had crossed the street did she take the time to look back at her house and think about what she had written in her note to her father.

Dear Daddy,

I'm sorry, but I can't move away. It's been my home for so long. I don't really know where I'm going, but don't worry, I'll be safe. Remember, I have my guardian angel to protect me. I love you Daddy, even if you don't believe.

Your daughter,

Misako



Misako gave a grim smile and turned away. As she walked quickly past shops and restaurants, people turned their heads. It looked odd to see a young child like Misako walking down the streets with a suitcase in her grasped as the ventured on all alone. Her stomach grumbled relentlessly, but she ignored it and continued onwards to nowhere.

"Hey, little girl. What are you doing on the streets? Are you lost?"

Misako turned to face an old man in a police suit. She began to tremble. "N-No. I-I'm fine sir. I...uh, I have to go. " Misako turned and began to run, pushing her way through the sea of people. She could hear the policeman's footsteps getting closer; they pounded in her ears.

"Wait! Little girl, please stop for a minute!" The old man stopped. His breath was ragged. He looked up as he watched the small girl disappear around the corner.

Misako had figured that the man had stopped following her, but she ran nonetheless. Her legs began to ache and burn, and slowly her speed decreased. She gave a fleeting glance backward, only to run smack dab into a person, knocking them both down on the sidewalk. Misako held her knee, little specks of blood were on her hands and she began to whimper. The pain only magnified when she saw the particles of gravel in her knee.



"Oh dear. Are you okay?" The sweet voice asked Misako glanced upwards and met with a pair of crimson eyes, beautiful crimson eyes.

*Those eyes. Oh my gosh! How can it be?* Misako temporarily forgot about the pain and the tears that were forming in her eyes. *Those eyes are exactly the same as his...*

"Are you okay? Oh no, you're bleeding." They young woman's sea green hair fell gracefully on her shoulder and her burning red eyes were filled with concern.

"I-I'm fine..."Misako stated flatly as she stared at the woman in front of her. She watched as the girl pulled out a handkerchief from her pocket and began to wipe up the blood.

"It's not too bad. It's just a shallow scrape, but there's some gravel in it so I'll have to take it out." The girl diverted her attention from the scrape and gave Misako a reassuring smile.



"Are...are you an angel too?" Misako asked tentatively. She avoided making eye contact.



"No, I don't believe so. Why do you ask?"



"You look just like him, like my guardian angel. You have the same eyes."

The young woman just smiled in response. "I'm Yukina. What's your name?" Her voice was filled with kindness.

"Misako. My name is Misako Tarukano." She gave a weak little smile.

"I'm sorry, about knocking you down Yukina."

Yukina tied the white handkerchief around Misako's knee and began to help her up. "That's fine Misako. I think that we should take you back to your house so we can clean up your knee before it gets infected." Yukina offered her hand but Misako didn't take it.

"I won't go." Misako said firmly as she crossed her arms in defiance. Yukina glanced at the little girl with a worried frown as her vision caught the little suitcase Misako was carrying.

"Why not? You wouldn't be running away would you?" Yukina inquired carefully.

"It doesn't matter. My dad doesn't believe me, and he wants to move." Misako started to sob as she looked up at Yukina. "I don't want to move away from here. What if my angel doesn't know where I've gone? What if I don't see him ever again?"

Yukina smiled as she rumpled Misako's hair playfully. She bent down so she could look the little girl straight in the face. "Now Misako, does your daddy love you?" Sniffled and nodded. "Then all he wants for you is to be happy. I'm sure your Daddy just wants to make sure you're safe. Sometimes, you just have to trust people Misako. You should know that you're father would never intentionally do anything to hurt you."

"Do you really think so? I love my Daddy, but-but-"

"But you don't want to leave your angel? I'm sure he would never be able to forget you Misako. But the point is, your angel can get along without you for a little while, but I don't think your father can." Yukina gave Misako a comforting hug, "He needs you Misako."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The wind blew wildly; it was a complete contrast of the day before. The skies loomed overhead with gray clouds that threatened to pour down in rain. Misako stared out the large window as she watched the planes take off into the sky, going to who knows where. She still didn't want to go, but as she watched her father walk towards her with a candy bar in hand, she remembered Yukina's words.

*He needs you Misako.*



Misako smiled, he did need her. That's why she came back to her house that day, slipping it without her father ever knowing she was gone. That's why she crumpled up that note and emptied her suitcase and decided to stay with her father, even if it meant moving away. Even if it meant going a little while without her angel there to watch her.



As Misako and her father sat on the plane waiting for take-off, Misako took out a pad of paper and a pencil. She began to sketch Hiei's face. It was no work of art, but she would improve with practice. Misako just hoped she wouldn't forget his appearance before she became really good.

She stared out the small window by her seat. On the wing of the plane she caught a blur of black, and for a fleeting moment she saw two red eyes staring at her. Misako knew that she would never be able to forget him, her angel. The memory had been burned into her heart, the way his beautiful eyes burned with crimson beauty. Yes, that's where Hiei would be...in her heart.

A/N: Next up, chapter three!