Hey guys! This is my very first oneshot. It is a KuramaxBotan fic. It used to be the songfic that I wrote for "Listen To Your Heart", but deleted it. I finally felt like editing and reposting it, but changed the category to drama/romance. (I still kept the part where Botan sings for a little bit though.) I hope that I haven't failed anyone w/ my first attempt at a oneshot. I tried my best to make it work well, so please forgive me if isn't to your liking. Please read and review. I would greatly appreciate it. And now, on with the story……..

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho. If I did, I would have died from happiness and shock. I also do not own the song lyrics from "Listen To Your Heart" (by Dht) that Botan sings in this fic. I also have no claim on the title of this fic as well.
Listen To Your Heart
"…blah…" --- song lyrics
…blah… --- story
'…blah…' --- thoughts

A gentle blur darted between the forested trees, dispersing warm, salty tears in her wake. The blur belonged to that of a blue-haired girl. She was running away, trying to escape her problems. She was desperate to find a way out, but could think of none. She finally stopped running when she reached a clearing. She fell to her knees, her cerulean bangs covering her eyes.

Botan looked up into the sky, her amethyst orbs searching for comfort. The emotions stirring within her matched the gray, cloud-filled abyss above. She couldn't take it anymore. She felt as if she were going to burst. All she wanted to do was to be freed of this pain. This pain. This pain that brought her life, that brought her love, and now brought her complete misery. This pain that had brought her him.

Kurama. That was the name of the red-haired kitsune that had stolen her heart. Every time she thought about him, her heart would race wildly. Now, whenever she did think about him, her heart would shatter into a million pieces. She wanted to be with him, hold and caress him, and never let go. Botan loved Kurama. It was plain and simple, but she was never so sure about his feelings.

He was one of the quiet members of the group, always having that distant look in his eyes. That same mysterious, calculating look that captived those who saw him. He kept to himself, always remembering to put the safety of his friends and family before his own. Before she knew it, Botan had fallen for the half-breed, never even realizing that her feelings for the kitsune had changed since she met him.

Botan felt a couple of raindrops hit her arms. The light drizzle of water began to fall harder, flattening her hair, which she had been wearing down. She sat down and wrapped her arms around her legs and lay her forehead on her knees. She closed her eyes and tried to forget the youkai thief. Her heart was breaking over someone who didn't love her back. His actions and demeanor towards her had told her so. There was no denying or avoiding the truth. 'Kurama doesn't love me,' she thought to herself. In a vain attempt to find solace, she raised her head to the sky once more.

By now, Botan was completely drenched in the downpour. She remained in the same position in the clearing that she had stopped in. Memories began to flood her once again. They were mostly of events that had taken place at the Dark Tournament. She recalled Kurama's battle against Gama and Touya of Team Masho. She remembered his helplessness when Bakken had taken advantage of the unconscious kitsune to gain a victory. She remembered how she had felt angry and how protective she had felt of Kurama. She remembered how blood and tissue had been smeared on the battle platform during his grievous struggle with Karasu. She remembered how she would have felt if she had lost him. But that was all in the past. Botan knew that she had to forget it all in order to move on with her life.

Then, she began to remember a song that Keiko had become obsessed with. She had told Botan that it would help with her special situation. Botan had doubted it at the time, but at this moment, it soothed her aching soul. She opened her mouth and let her sorrow carry out the melody on her harmonic voice.

"and there are voices
that want to be heard
so much to mention
but you can't find the words"

Botan stood up and summoned her oar. Her decision was final. She was going back to Reikai and would never return. Her voice began to crack, but she kept singing anyway.

"the scent of magic
the beauty that's been
when love was wilder than the wind"

Her voice was cracking even more now. She could not control her emotions anymore. She stopped singing. She could no longer contain her tears, as they began to flow freely down her wet face. As she mounted her oar, she felt something grasp it. She turned around only to come face to face with a pair of emerald eyes staring back at her.

"Do not stop on account of me. Please keep singing. You voice is too beautiful for you to stop."

"What are you doing here?" Botan inquired. She didn't want to be here. She wanted to get away from him, the sole cause of her pain.

"I was worried about you," replied Kurama. His fiery mane was drenched by the rain, signs that he had been searching for her for a long time. He was genuinely concerned about her, but Botan didn't care. She had already gotten her answer.

She turned her tearstained face away from him. "Will you please let go of my oar? I have to get back to Reikai."

He gently lifted her off the oar. Botan struggled against him, but he had a firm grip on the deity. When she noticed this, she turned away from him, not daring to look him straight in the eye.

"Will you please let go of me? Don't you get it! I don't want to be here! And I don't want to be around you!" pleaded a squirming Botan.

Kurama gently cupped her chin and wiped away her tears. "Please don't cry, it doesn't suit you."

"Can't you see that you're hurting me, Kurama!" shouted Botan, as she finally wriggled free of his grip. "Can't you hear my heart breaking whenever I see you!"

"Don't you think that it pains me greatly to see you like this, Botan! I feel like someone has taken my heart and torn it to pieces!" Botan was taken aback. She had never heard Kurama speak to anyone like that, let alone her.

"I had made a solemn vow to not get close to anyone. I didn't want anyone to get hurt because of me. I could never bear the pain of losing someone close to me. When Yakumo had kidnapped you, I was devastated. I didn't know what to do. But I knew that I had to get you back, no matter what the cost. Don't you see that it's the only reason why I never got close to you, Botan. I told myself that I could ignore these feelings, that they were just a mere adolescent crush. But I was wrong. I wanted us to just remain friends. I only feared for your safety, because I wouldn't know what I would have done without you. Botan, I…I…"

"You what, Kurama?" shouted the frustrated deity.

"I LOVE YOU! I. Love. You. I want to be with you. I want you to be my wife. I want to have a family with you. I want to grow old with you. You and you alone. You are the only one for me, because I love you!"

Botan was at a loss for words. She could not believe what she was hearing. Her heart was racing so rapidly and loudly that she thought even Kurama heard it. Botan felt flushed. She nearly fainted, only to be caught in Kurama's lean arms. Their lips were inches apart from each other. She looked up at him. She lost herself within his emerald gaze. She lifted her hands to his face and positioned it so that they were face to face.

Botan whispered something that the kitsune would never forget. "I love you, too." She leaned in towards him and kissed him ever so passionately. When their lips parted, Kurama looked at Botan.

"I love you, my deity," he whispered. "I love you, my kitsune," she whispered back. And they braced themselves for another passionate kiss.

Well, that's it. Thanks for reading! I really do appreciate it. Please R&R. Your insights mean the world to me, lol… ;-P

- Kit -