Disclaimer: I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho and its characters. I do own the plot, Riya and other OC's of this story, though. I only write for pleasure and fun—but a few reviews would surely pay off all my hard work on this one.
Warning: The characters might not be in their usual selves. In other words, possible OOC.
-x-x-
AT LEAST WE HAVE FOREVER—Chapter 39: Just The Two Of Us
The next day, Hanasakura Academy…
Music class was their last period for that morning, just before lunch break. All of the students of Class 2-C were having that class and now, they were listening to their music teacher as she talked in front.
"Alright, class. For your assignment, I want you to find your pair for your performances next week."
Most of the class frowned at that. "Performances?"
The teacher nodded. "That's right. Each of you will have to think of a song that would most likely reflect what you feel about love or to the person that you love. And not just any song. You have to choose an English love song. It will be done individually and by pairs. You will be performing in the auditorium next week so you have two days more to think carefully about the songs you're going to perform."
One student raised her hand to catch the teacher's attention.
"Yes, Taniyama-san?"
"So that means the pair will be performing a total of 3 songs for the performance?"
The teacher nodded. "That's right. That's why you have to choose your partner for this assignment carefully. It has to be someone you're comfortable with and you have to choose the songs you have to sing that would most likely reflect your feelings about love. I'm expecting a good performance from all of you."
Kirika raised her hand and caught the attention of their music teacher.
"Sensei, what will happen if a certain pair had a good performance next week?"
"The pair who will have a good performance is, of course, going to perform for the closing celebration of the Rose Festival. Each of the class are having the same assignment as you do. So I guess you could say that it's going to be a long celebration for all of you."
After that, the music class ended and it was lunch break. The gang decided to go to their usual spot to have lunch together and everyone were talking about their music assignments.
"I guess I'll be cramming up thinking of what to sing for the performance," Kuwabara said while chewing. "I'm not really a musically-inclined person like Yukari-chan."
"Singing a song doesn't really have anything to do with being musically-inclined, Kuwabara-senpai," Yukari replied and then giggled. "As long as you sing it from your heart, you won't have any problem at all."
"And besides, you'll be singing a love song. So I guess you could think of a song that would fit your feelings for Yukina-san," Akane said.
Kuwabara lit up as he heard that and continued eating. Akane slightly shook her head before giggling and faced Yusuke afterwards.
"So I guess Yusuke-san and Keiko-chan will be performing together for their music assignment, huh?"
Yusuke just gave out a "hmph" while Keiko smiled before nodding.
"Our only problem would be the songs to sing. It's hard to pick the right song to be performed," Keiko said.
"You're right," Yukari agreed. "Even I'm having a problem choosing the right song."
"I guess you're not the only ones who have that kind of problem," Ayako muttered before glancing at Kurama and Riya. The others later glanced to the said pair, as well.
"Or maybe not," Soujiro said with a smile when he saw Kurama and Riya having a good conversation without a care in the world.
When the said pair had finally noticed that they were being stared at, they glanced at the group and that was when they saw them having sly smiles on their faces. Riya quirked an eyebrow while Kurama chuckled at the sight.
"Why are you looking at us like that?" Riya asked.
"Nothing much," Ayako answered. Then she faced Kurama. "Speaking of which, who is your partner for the assignment, Minamino-kun?"
But Kurama just glanced at Riya for some seconds, already indicating the answer to Ayako's question. They just nodded as they understood that and they just continued eating their lunches together.
Kurama looked at Riya after eating and worry struck him upon seeing her holding the side of her head, as if she was in pain.
"Riya, are you alright?" he asked but the said girl just answered him with a smile before nodding. "Are you sure?"
"I'm alright, Shuichi-kun. I'm just… feeling a little dizzy."
Though he perfectly knew it was a lie, he decided to let it go since he knew she wouldn't tell him the truth. He saw her stand up and look at him.
"Come on, we need to go to our next class," Riya said before she left them in a hurry. Upon reaching the comfort room, she immediately closed the door of the cubicle and held her head with both of her hands as she leaned on the door.
Riya bit her lip as she tried to muffle the sound that might come out of her mouth. No one knew but she was having severe headaches since she woke up in Genkai's house unable to remember Kurama. It was a good thing she was able to hold it in until now. No one had to know that she was feeling that way. Not yet.
As for the others, they were left quite puzzled upon seeing Riya's sudden leaving and the wielders already figured out that there was something wrong with their mistress. The wielders exchanged worried glances with each other before deciding to leave it as it was for now.
But Kurama wasn't going to do the same thing. He knew at that moment that there was something wrong with Riya. He had to find out what before something would happen to her again. As for the item he had to give to her in order for her memories to return, he had to wait for more than a week for him to have it.
He hoped that he wouldn't be late by the time he gave it to Riya… since that item was his only hope to have her back to his life and win the final war.
The legendary war beneath the blue moon.
-x-x-
Saturday…
Riya woke up early, feeling excited about her date with Kurama later that morning since she decided to start that date before Yusuke even find out about it. She heard a knock just as she sat up.
"Come in," she said in a slightly loud voice. After that, she yawned and did a little stretching. That was when the door opened and she smiled when she saw who it was.
"It seems you're already awake, my Lady," a woman with blue eyes and silver hair who looked like 25 years old said as she entered the room. "Excited about your date?"
"Yeah. You could say that. Besides, I don't want to be late on this date and I don't want Yusuke and the others to find out. They'll just ruin the fun," Riya said as she got up from bed.
The woman proceeded to the bed and started fixing it. Riya just shook her head slightly upon seeing the woman's actions.
"Mari-san, you really never get tired of doing that, huh? I'm turning 17 and yet you still do stuffs that I can do on my own."
The woman named Mari smiled upon facing Riya and continued fixing the bed. Riya just let her do it and proceeded to the bathroom to take a bath.
Mari was the one who prepared the clothes that Riya would be wearing for the date. She already knew her mistress' taste when it comes to clothes and her fashion stress during occasions since she was Riya's personal maid ever since the said girl was born. But besides being an efficient and caring maid/confidante/friend, she also had other reasons why she was hired by the Miyuzaki family for Riya. As for now, only Yumi knew that reason.
Riya got out of the bathroom and wasn't surprised to see clothes laid on her bed. She knew Mari prepared it for her.
"Thanks for helping me with the clothes, Mari-san," she said in a tone that the woman could still hear who was outside of her room and in the kitchen. After heaving a sigh, she started getting ready.
The clothes laid on her bed were just how she wanted them to be: simple with a touch of elegance to it. But before she wore the clothes, she dried her hair first using a hair blower. It took her about 20 minutes before she was satisfied.
Her outfit was consisted of a powder blue blouse, a midriff jacket, a denim skirt, and blue boots. Her hair was done in a large ponytail and she carried a blue slingbag. The only make-up she applied to her face was face powder and lip gloss since she wasn't really used to having make-up on her face. In a way, she could say she was suffering skin allergy from too much. She applied her favorite scent of perfume before she considered it alright. She smiled at herself upon looking in front of the mirror.
When Riya got out of the room and went straight to the dining table, she was surprised to see Kurama already sitting in front of it while having a sip of coffee. Before she could even ask how he got in, Mari spoke.
"I don't want Yusuke-kun to know what you two were up to. So when Shuichi-kun knocked, I said he should come in and wait for you here."
Riya just chuckled and had a look at Kurama. He was wearing a white shirt topped with a green jacket, jeans, and a pair of sneakers.
"Do you always wear clothes that looks amazing on you every time?" Kurama asked before standing up.
"I don't know anything about that. All I can say is that Mari-san prepared this for me," she responded with a smile.
Kurama looked at Mari and smiled. "I must say she has a good taste in clothes."
"Lady Riya only knows how to handle those clothes in order to project a good look as she wore them," Mari commented. "In any case, you two need to leave here before Yusuke-kun wakes up or your friends arrive here."
With that, Kurama stood up and Riya went to Mari before kissing the woman's cheeks.
"Thank you," Riya said sincerely to Mari.
Mari smiled at that before she led the pair out of the apartment. Kurama and Riya walked carefully but fast enough in order not to wake Yusuke up. Thankfully, they managed to do so. When they got out of the building, Riya saw a motorbike waiting for them and Kurama got onto it before she could even say something.
"Don't tell me we're going to ride on that one? And where did you get this, anyway?" Riya asked as she approached the motorbike.
"Koenma's letting me use it."
"And I believe you have a license to drive something like this, huh?"
"Koenma's not that dumb enough to lend this to me if I didn't have one."
Riya chuckled before Kurama gave the other helmet to her upon wearing the other. She took it from him and put it on as she got into the bike. After making sure she got on, she wrapped her arms around Kurama, which caused the red head to stiffen but managed to conquer it.
"Ready to go?" Kurama asked as he turned to look at her.
She nodded and smiled, securing her hold to his body.
Kurama smiled before starting the engine and started to head out somewhere… wherever that was.
"Where are we going?" Riya asked out of curiosity.
"Anywhere," he answered.
"Now something's telling me that's a lot of places to go to."
"Good thing you know."
Both of them chuckled at that as he continued driving. A few minutes later, they reached a small café. They got off the bike after parking it.
"I guess going here should mean we have to eat breakfast first," she said.
"That's right. Since I know we'll be busy the whole day, I thought we should have something to fill our stomach that will help us throughout the day."
"Alright. If you say so, then."
Kurama grabbed her hand as they went inside to order breakfast. They took a seat to a table set up on that café's rooftop and a waiter took their orders. But just by doing that, Riya felt another sting of familiarity once more, though she decided to ignore it since she knew it would be impossible.
Or was it?
In any case, she decided to enjoy her breakfast with Kurama since it was the 'first time' she had breakfast with him. While eating, they talked about a lot of things both of them could think of.
"You know, I was wondering if Yusuke had already figured out we're on a date," Riya asked from out of the blue just after they were done eating.
"I bet he just woke up and went to your apartment only to be surprised to know you're with me."
"Where to next?"
"Hmm… Well," Kurama mumbled as he looked at his wristwatch. "It's only 8:42 in the morning, so I guess we should head out somewhere to spend the rest of the time before the final stop."
She frowned a bit. "The final stop? Where could that be?"
"I'll let you know sooner," he replied. "So?"
"I wouldn't mind going anywhere with you."
Those words, though he knew it has no apparent meaning to her, had struck him to his heart. Those words, though said differently, appeared to have the same meaning as the ones Riya had spoken a few months back.
Words that would be left engraved in his heart for many years to come, he was sure of that.
"I'll always trust you, Shuichi. Forever, if you want to…"
"Are you alright, Shuichi-kun? You're spacing out," Riya inquired that startled him inwardly. He smiled and nodded as to not worry the maiden in front of him.
The girl seemed to be convinced since she didn't ask anything anymore.
"Come on. I know just the place for us to spend the rest of the time before we head to the last place," Kurama said. He left the money on the table and grabbed Riya's hand. Riya couldn't help but smile and slightly shook her head as he pulled her to get out of the café.
They went to a botanical garden, a butterfly field, and even to an eco-park with a shrine on it. After that, they went to a teddy bear show that happened to be done that day. Both of them enjoyed their time in each of the places they went to since what actually mattered to them was each other's presence.
They got onto the bike once more and Riya just let him take her whenever he planned to go. Besides, she trusted him. And after riding for about 20 minutes, they reached their destination. To her surprise, they actually went to the beach. So Riya looked at Kurama confusingly.
"What are we doing here?" Riya inquired.
"Let's just say I want us to spend our time together here for a short while." Though that was not the direct answer Riya was looking for, she nodded. After that, she took his hand and pulled him to go to the shore.
For some time, they just watched the sea and feel the breeze while trailing it together. Along the way, they talked a lot, joked around and have fun like… they've done this before. In any case, Riya was enjoying Kurama's presence and she could that he felt the same way. He was holding her left hand tight with his left hand while his right hand held her from the back of her waist.
She knew this was the first time she felt so peaceful in the arms of a man. But somehow, her heart—a part of her heart—felt otherwise. This wasn't the first time. All she could do was to ignore it because she couldn't find an answer to all her worries and questions. Right now, she wanted to cherish this moment with Kurama.
"Why did you bring me here?" Riya asked, breaking the silence between her and Kurama while they were sitting on the sand as they watched the gentle tossing of the waves.
"I want to take you to the place that you always love. A place where you feel calm. A place that has become your refuge and where you entrusted the safety of your dreams. This is the place that I know would fit that description," Kurama answered seriously without looking at her.
At the time, he closed his eyes as memories came rushing in his mind…
Two months ago, Kurama and Riya were having their alone time on the cliffside park even though they weren't considered an official couple yet. Still, they were spending much of their time together more often than not. They were watching the sunset together after their classes.
"I was wondering," Kurama started as he sat beside Riya after giving her a can of orange juice. "Why do you love going up here? Not that I'm complaining, but I observed that ever since we watched the fireworks here months ago. You kept on going here whenever you wanted to be alone."
Riya faced him with a sincere smile on her face before answering. "It's because this place reminds me of the sea, especially when I'm watching the sunset."
"The sea?" he asked, frowning a bit. She nodded. "So what do you like so much about the sea that made you happy whenever you're looking at it?"
"The sea always reminds me that I should never give up whatever changes and challenges we're facing in life. It always makes me feel calm and I felt like I could entrust everything to it. Besides that, the sea holds a lot of mystery and stories, just like our lives. Sometimes, the only things we see to a person are the shallow parts of himself. We only choose to stay in a place where we think we're actually safe and wouldn't allow ourselves to be involved with that person. That's where the saying 'First impression lasts' applies. After a while, we discovered that all of us have a part so deep which remains mysterious to most of us. That part is where we hold our feelings, pasts, and secrets," Riya explained that undeniably surprised Kurama, especially when she looked at him and smiled. "You know, you yourself still have a lot of mysteries that you're trying to keep in secret."
"Me? Why did you say that?"
"Well, I can see that whenever I look into your eyes. Though I wanted to discover your mysteries for myself, I can't do anything. I felt like I wanted to stay somewhere safe for a while, some place where I could shield myself from the negative emotions that I would possibly feel once I learned the truth," Riya stated seriously.
"You're not the only one who felt that way. But we'll take all the time we need to learn each other's secrets once we think we're ready."
The maiden smiled and placed her head on his shoulder. "The next time, will it be okay if we go to the sea together, just the two of us?"
But the answer Riya got was a hug from Kurama as he pulled her closer to him before speaking.
"We will. I promise," Kurama said sincerely.
"I'll hold on to that…"
After remembering that, Kurama looked at Riya. She was facing the sea with a smile on her face, even though he knew in his heart that she wouldn't remember that day.
Riya inhaled the sea breeze as it blew gently towards her face. "You're right about that. But how did you know that?"
Kurama shrugged. "Probably instincts…" Then he looked at her sincerely before continuing. "…with the help of my heart."
Riya smiled at that. After a few seconds, she closed her eyes and listened to the sound of the sea with all her heart. Kurama was right. The sea was one of the places where she felt so calm, like what she wasn't facing problems at all. It felt perfect. The sea was the place that she entrusted to remind her to dream, to strive, to trust and never lose hope. And it looked even more beautiful to her now that she has Kurama beside her—though she didn't know the reason for her to feel that way.
She slowly opened her eyes and turned to look at Kurama. He was looking at her with his eyes that looked like smiling and twinkling.
"Thank you for bringing me here, Shuichi-kun," she said sincerely.
"Don't thank me yet. You haven't seen the best of this date."
"Okay… If you say so." After that, Riya removed her boots and her jacket before pulling Kurama to stand up. "Come on! We still need to enjoy this seaside trip before the final stop."
Kurama then removed his jacket and sneakers before folding his pants a little below knee level. After that, both of them played on the sea as they allowed the seawater to wash their feet. It was a relaxing moment for them as they enjoyed the best out of it. Both of them were glad they were given moments like this.
After about an hour, they watched the sun began to set before Kurama looked at his watch.
"Okay. We need to go," Kurama said after putting back his sneakers and jacket on.
"Finally!" she exclaimed excitedly. "So we're finally heading to the final stop?"
Kurama nodded before pulling her up as she was done putting back her jacket and boots on. They rode the motorbike once again as Riya watched Kurama drive it. He was like a knight, only riding a bike instead of a horse and definitely a gallant and handsome one who swept her off her feet. She smiled at the thought.
When they arrived at the destination, she was confused, surprised, and excited all at the same time upon seeing the place.
"A theme park? This is the final stop?" Riya asked in amusement.
The red head nodded and smiled. "The truth is that I wanted to show something here to you."
"And that would be… what?"
"You'll know sooner. In any case, why don't we enjoy the rides here for a while before I show you the surprise?" he suggested before grabbing her hand. Riya decided to let Kurama do what he wanted and she would just go with the flow. Besides, it was their own day together so she might as well enjoy it to the fullest.
After going to many rides, Riya felt like she went back to her childhood days. But comparing it to her childhood days back then, being with Kurama right now felt even more wonderful. It was so much fun.
It was already past seven in the evening when Kurama decided to show Riya his surprise. And so he took her to the Ferris wheel and rode in it.
"What are we doing in a Ferris wheel?" she asked as the ride began moving.
"You'll see," Kurama answered with a smile. She frowned but chose to let it go.
A few minutes had passed and they already reached the top of the ride when it suddenly stopped. Though Riya started to get scared, she didn't show it. But Kurama sensed it so he sat beside her and pulled her close to him.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
"I'm fine. What do you think happened?"
"You want to know why?" Though Riya confused to hear that, she nodded. To her surprise, Kurama smiled before pulling her up that caused her to close her eyes tight and unconsciously bury her face to his chest. Of course, that action surprised Kurama but he never showed it. Instead, Kurama held her closer.
"Look outside," Kurama whispered.
Though slightly shivering, Riya decided to follow what Kurama wanted. She lifted her head from his chest and looked outside that ride's window, only to be amazed at the sight that greeted her the moment she looked outside.
Fireworks began exploding like flowers blooming into the darkness of the night sky. Much to her delight, she had an up close view of the fireworks display since they were stuck on top of the Ferris Wheel. She couldn't help but to show a smile of gladness as she watched the display in front of her.
"How do you like this to end our date?" Kurama asked, breaking the silence between them. It made Riya face him with slight confusion.
"You mean… This is your plan?" she asked in counter to what he asked. Kurama nodded as an answer.
"What do you think? Do you like it?"
"This is the best part of this date, Shuichi-kun," she replied sincerely before facing outside. "Oh my! This is so wonderful. This is the first time I've seen a fireworks display up close." After that, she faced Kurama. "Thank you for showing this to me."
"As long as you keep on smiling, I wouldn't mind showing you a lot of wonderful surprises," Kurama said.
Riya smiled. "Being with you like this is one enough reason for me to smile."
"Me, too."
They continued to watch the fireworks together before the suspended Ferris Wheel began moving again. After the ride, Kurama thanked the management for arranging the fireworks display before they proceeded to go home. Upon reaching the apartment building, Kurama decided to escort Riya to her apartment.
"I had a lot of fun today. Thank you," she said with a smile.
"So did I," he said before leaning down and gave her a kiss on her cheek. "Good night. See you tomorrow," he added that made her frown.
"Tomorrow."
"Yup. For our practice. We're partners, remember?"
Riya slapped her forehead and groaned because of that since she forgot about that. And then she laughed.
"Okay. See you tomorrow." Riya turned around and was about to open the door when she decided to do something before entering. With that in mind, she turned around once more to face Kurama. Only to be left in a state of shock because of what happened.
Their lips touched for a few seconds or so as soon as she turned around. Upon realizing what happened, Riya pulled away with wide eyes. Kurama had the same expression on his face as soon as he pulled away, as well. But the sensation that the simple kiss left was still there. Both of them were blushing soon after.
That simple kiss was undeniably as spine-tingling as a torrid kiss. Without a word, Riya opened the door and entered the apartment. Kurama left the building after realizing that Riya finally went inside.
Unknown to the pair, that unexpected kiss was recorded in a video. The gang were actually watching what was happening outside of the apartment and all of them were surprised to see the events.
A few hours later, Riya finally managed to gather her thoughts and senses after that kiss. Mari made her eat dinner even though she didn't have that much appetite. After that, she went to the balcony and sat on one corner to watch the stars shimmer that night. It was a breathtaking view and she loved the night time breeze that blew forth.
Though during the whole time she was stargazing, she was holding her cellphone open to her contacts list. She had a hard time deciding whether or not she would call Kurama and try to explain. But each time she finally had the guts, she was losing it as soon as she stared at the number and tried to press the Call button.
In the end, she decided to call him.
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