I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho.

Chapter One- Searching

A bell rang and an announcer said, "The winner is Hiei!" A roar from the crowd ran around the arena as a short man with spiky black hair stood in the ring, arms raised in triumph. His crimson eyes scanned the crowd, but no one stood out to him. A lot of good-looking girls and boys, but none speak to me or more specifically my heart. Oh, well. I'm enjoying showing off my fighting skills. He jumped out of the ring and strode into the hallway that led to the locker room. He sat on the bench, grabbed a nearby towel, and started drying his face.

He heard the door open and the deep voice of his trainer and manager, Bui. "Great performance, Hiei."

Hiei slowly lowered the towel to look up at the tall man. "But?" he prompted.

"Your leg work needs improving. I suggest you work on that before your next appearance."

"Of course. I'll do that, Coach." He flashed his winning smirk as Bui left. I've got another fighting exhibition in three days, but really only one day to work on my legs, not counting today. Hn, Bui's always telling me to improve my leg performance. It's a bit difficult to do so as I can't work on them all the time. Besides, once I find my soulmate, I'll most likely have no need to continue these events as much as I enjoy them.

He changed his clothes and wrapped an illusion spell around himself to avoid fans before leaving the building. He walked down the sidewalk, looking around as he did so. This wasn't his city and enjoyed exploring it while looking for his soulmate. He had bee visiting and fighting in this city for a year, becoming a star with fighting fans. Bui had seen him at an amateur competition and took him under his wing to improve his skills. Hiei won every event, match, and competition under Bui's coaching and had become famous. Bui had wanted to travel the country with his star, but Hiei firmly stated that he was not interested in country-wide fame. The prize money he won was sufficient. He kept some for himself, but gave the majority to various charities as well as giving Bui his training fee. His generous donations added to his fame and the girls seem to love him for it as well as a few guys.

But none of them moves my heart as would happen the moment I see my soulmate. I have a few hours before it gets dark. He moved quickly to the park to observe the people and continue his search. He felt grateful for his illusion spell as he would have been mobbed before getting a hundred feet from the fighting dome. He looked like an unassuming man, yet was attractive with firm muscles. Once he found his soulmate, he would get him or her alone and drop the spell. He roamed the area for a couple of hours before heading to a cliff that was high above the sea and quite deserted. There, he dropped the spell and began to practice his leg exercises.

He lifted his right leg straight up, balancing on his left one. His leg snapped forward in a sharp kick. He turned to deliver a side kick and then a back kick followed by a roundhouse. He then switched to his left leg and repeated the kicks. He thought his kicks were sharp and strong. An opponent he fought last week had to go to the hospital because a kick from Hiei had fractured a kneecap. But Bui insisted his legs could improve and Hiei could hardly deny that; compared to his upper body, his legs were weak.

He sat down on the cliff's edge as the sun's edge started to dip below the horizon. His legs dangled over the side, the heels kicking at the cliff face. The sun vanished and Hiei was soon slapping the rock instead of kicking. He pushed himself off the cliff and into the water below, a black and red swirled fishtail following him underwater.

He twitched his fins and bent his tail back and forth before swimming for home. His interest in humans was quite common among merpeople, but most chose not to interact with them unless they, like Hiei, sensed their soulmate was among the humans, which was rare. If I do find him or her, I will have to choose between my life under the sea or my life on land, if he or she insists I choose. If I choose to stay human, I will be able to participate in more marital arts events and such. Perhaps even agree to the country-wide tour Bui desires. However, that would mean never seeing my friend and my sister again unless they chose to become human temporarily to visit.

Hiei swam into the city and made a beeline for the floral shop. He pushed open the door, setting the flower bell above jingling. The sound alerted a merboy with long red hair green eyes, and a green and yellow swirled tail to come out of the back.

"Hiei!" he said happily. "I was just about to say we were closed." The merboy swam to the door, locked it, and put up a "closed" sign.

"Hn. I knew that, Kurama."

"So, how was your event today?" Kurama asked as they swam into a nearby breakroom.

"I won again. Bui made the usual comment about leg training."

"Really? I would have thought breaking your opponent's kneecap last week would have put an end to that."

Hiei chuckled. "Bui knows I want to be strong and I can't deny that my legs are weaker than the rest of my body."

"I'm guessing you didn't find your soulmate again, otherwise you would have mentioned it first."

"Correct, but I know he or she lives on land and in that city. My only thing is if I live here in the sea or on land if I find him or her should he or she insist I choose. It's likely that I will end up staying human with the aid of a sorcerer or sorceress."

"Not necessarily. Surely, the two of you could stay in your respective races and love one another."

"Maybe. It's just I'm only human from dawn to dusk as long as I'm completely out of the water by dawn. My soulmate will be human all the time."

"Well, you have to find your soulmate first."

"I'm working on it, but it's a big city. I'll keep searching the day after tomorrow. I just want to relax at home."

"Sounds good." Kurama and Hiei left through the back door which the redhead locked behind them.

"Your mother trusts you to run the shop yourself now?"

"That's right. Uh, Hiei? I…found my soulmate yesterday while you were training."

"You did? Who is it?"

"Yukina."

"Yukina? My sister?"

"Yes. The moment I saw her yesterday, my heart missed a beat. Everyone knows that the sign."

"Yes. I'll feel it when I see my soulmate but it won't occur with my soulmate since he or she will be human."

"Humans do have a notion called love at first sight. It sounds similar to our soul sign."

"I hope my soulmate gets that feeling when he or she sees me. Well, good night."

"Night, Hiei." Kurama swam home, Yukina's face appearing in his mind. He had known Yukina for years, hung out with her and Hiei countless times. When they reached adolescence, they were told of the need for a soulmate. Kurama got the urge and it told him that his soulmate was in the city. It wasn't until yesterday when Yukina came into the shop for some flowers that he knew that she was the one. It was clear from the way she looked at him that her heart had skipped a beat too. The blush on her face was his second clue.

"We're soulmates," he had said in just above a whisper while Yukina nodded, smiling happily.

It was a wonderful moment yesterday. We'll be seeing each other more often and in a few years, we'll be officially mated and begin a family of our own. It won't be that easy for Hiei as he's seeking a human soulmate. It is possible that he will permanently trade his tail for legs in order to be with the one he loves. Yukina and I will be crushed if he makes that choice, but we just want him to be happy.