This story is dedicated to my good friend Blackbelt. I am so incredibly sorry for the long delay!

NOTE: Before I begin, I would like to make a few things clear:

First of all, Botan is not going to be Koenma's little "ferry girl" that aids Yusuke in all of his missions and sends deceased people to the spiritual realm. Hinegeshi, from the YYH movie Poltergeist Report, will be taking over that job for her. However, unlike her movie character, my Hinegeshi will have the gift of telepathy.

Botan will also be somewhat OOC, and this is because she is going to be part of a rare breed of demons known as Veela (actually, she's only a half demon, but I'll get to that later). A Veela's power and appearance will be explained later on, if not in this chapter then surely the next. (And yes, I know that Veela are beautiful "women" from the Harry Potter series, and that, when angered, transform into some sort of deranged, rabid bird. But I can assure you that in this story they are going to be quite different.)

Next, there will be one OOC portrayed within this story, and her name is Callie. (Some of you might have read about this particular persona in a couple of BlackBelt's stories, and this is because the character actually belongs to her—and yes, I do encourage you all to go and read her work if you haven't already. It's awesome!) In this specific story, she'll be a feisty, cat-like demon, able to transform into any breed of feline that she wishes (both normal and abnormal alike). And upon reverting back into her human-like form, she keeps the ears and tail of the species of cat she had just been. I'll explain/portray her human appearance and personality later on in this chapter.

Last but not least, Keiko and Shizuru know about everything. This takes place before the Dark Tournament, so I just wanted to make that clear to avoid confusion.

Pairings: Kurama/Botan and Hiei/OOC, with very minor Yusuke/Keiko and Kuwabara/Yukina

"talking"

'thoughts'

(sighs, gasps, coughs, etc.)

Rated M for language.

Disclaimer: There are many things that I do not own: among them are Yu Yu Hakusho, the word "Veela" and the OOC, Callie. That leaves me with…well, nothing really. (O.o)

oooOOOooo

Chapter 1: Find Her!

The four victorious fighters gazed wordlessly after the petite girl's retreating silhouette, contentedly listening to the puffy, white snow fall silently around them. That is, until an impatient someone couldn't keep his big mouth shut any longer…

"(sniff) Goodbye, Yukina! Goodbye, my love! I will miss you more than the sun that fills the bright, morning sky! I will miss you more than the moon that fills the—er—dark evening sky! I will miss you more than the—ow! What the hell was that for, Urameshi!" Kuwabara whimpered softly as he placidly rubbed the small lump that had suddenly surfaced on top of his scalp. "Meany."

"Sorry man, but you were seriously starting to get on my nerves…hey, don't look at me like that! It was either my fist to your skull, or Hiei's sword through your skull!" Yusuke retaliated in response to his obtuse friend's vicious glare. "So quit crying like a stupid baby!"

"Actually, I was thinking more along the lines of completely disconnecting his cranium from the rest of his body," Hiei remarked tediously. "But your idea is good too."

Kuwabara's irate visage instantly twisted into one of anxious fear. "Uh…" He laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head, all the while slowly backing away from the dark demon's small frame. "D-don't you dare come any closer, you three-eyed freak! Or…or I may be forced to do something very drastic!" Following his articulate warning, Kuwabara proceeded to hold up his fists and take on a sloppy fighting stance, narrowing his eyes like an angry lion.

"Please, save your childish antics for someone who actually cares," the black haired apparition droned, rolling his eyes and shoving his bandaged hands into his pockets.

The orange haired fighter let out a fierce growl, preparing to lunge at his negligent intimidator if necessary. "Hey! At least I'm not three feet tall, weighing in at 75 measly pounds!"

Kurama gave off a tired sigh as he, silent and furtive as a fox, came up from behind the large boy and pinned his flailing arms behind his back, easily overpowering him. "That'll be quite enough, Kuwabara. This is hardly necessary."

Hiei merely smirked as he tilted his head in the fox's direction. "See? What did I tell you? We're babysitters. And it really irritates me to think that this is what superior crime lords like us have been reduced to: pathetic, human babysitters."

Yusuke lifted an amused brow and crossed his arms. "Pardon?"

The mischievous sprite scoffed. "You heard me."

"Then I'll pretend like I hadn't."

"Pretend whatever the hell you want. It doesn't make a difference to me."

"Clearly."

Meanwhile, Kuwabara, who was still a cuffed captive of Kurama, appeared to have regained most of his composure, for he was gazing contentedly off in the direction that the tiny ice princess had gone, salivating like a hungry puppy. "(sigh) Yukina. Yukina, Yukina, Yukina."

Kurama, feeling that it was now safe to do so, slowly released the drooling boy from his custody, curiously eyeing the beating, pink hearts that had suddenly consumed his coal, black eyes. He turned towards Yusuke and Hiei, his expression half perplexed, half amused. "Well…that didn't take very long."

"Hey, the guy does have a one-track mind, so naturally, when it comes to the ladies, all other thoughts, no matter how important, are immediately overridden and he is suddenly transformed into this…well…" Yusuke motioned towards his goofy friend with a wave of his hand. "This drooling, incoherent thing."

He sniggered along with Kurama for a few moments as their ridiculed partner cursed bitterly under his breath, but stopped suddenly as he randomly began to shiver. He carefully focused his chocolaty eyes on the warm, visible air that slowly drifted from his nose and mouth each time he exhaled. Funny...he had almost forgotten that they were still standing out in the middle of a giant blizzard.

"Damn I'm freezing. Whaddya say we all get outta here? I'm sure Keiko's anxiously awaiting my return to the living world, because now she's got a new excuse to slap me upside the head—and no people, I'm afraid that it is not the invention of Advil."

"Heh, heh. Sucks to be you!" Kuwabara exclaimed in on overly sarcastic tone. "Too bad you don't have a girlfriend like Yukina. She's perfect in every single—ow! Dammit, Urameshi! Would you please stop doing that!"

Yusuke snorted and shoved his frozen hands into his pockets. "If you shut your stupid trap and never open it again unless you promise to permanently cease saying things that you know will tick me off, then yes, I will stop smacking you." He paused for a moment to let out a long, dramatic sigh. "Alas, I know for a fact that hell has a better chance of freezing over, so I have no idea why I'm even bothering to have this conversation with you."

"Hey, why don't you come over here and say that to my face!"

"Hn. Ya know, I'm beginning to think that Mr. High 'n Mighty should start paying us for wasting our time assisting those two morons," Hiei remarked arrogantly as he and Kurama slowly walked off.

The red-haired fox grinned. "Don't push your luck, Hiei. Remember, we're still on probation."

"Says who? That insignificant toddler? Like I actually give a damn what he says."

Suddenly, a high pitched ringing sound filled the quiet, night air. The two demons stopped dead in their tracks, slightly tilted their heads to either side, and strained their ears to listen.

"Hmm. Maybe the adolescent Lord has fallen and can't get up."

"If you say so."

"On second thought, he probably misplaced that disgusting mouthpiece of his requires immediate assistance locating its whereabouts."

"I'm sure."

"You know, you're much too rational. Must be because you're so damn old."

Kurama raised a brow. "I'll pretend like I didn't hear that; for your own sake." He smirked as he tuned back into what was being said behind them.

"Aw, shit! Koenma couldn't possibly be that stupid!" Yusuke moaned, frantically fumbling through his pockets. "Stupid communication mirror…" He growled impatiently as he caught hold the ringing device and yanked it from one of his back pockets. "And doesn't anyone seem to realize that this stupid thing looks like a fricken make-up compart—what!"

The person on the other line rolled their eyes. "(sigh) Think Yusuke: is that any way to talk to a lady?"

The young detective smiled sheepishly and scratched the back of his head. "Heh, heh. Hey there Hinegeshi! Wassup?" He laughed nervously at her upturned expression. "Sorry, I could have sworn that it was gonna be pacifier-breath."

Hinegeshi slowly shook her head. "I'm sure." Ignoring his pathetic attempt to uphold an innocent facade, she continued. "Look. Koenma needs you up here, pronto. I know it's a little early to start another mission, but this was really unexpected, not to mention urgent."

Yusuke snorted. "A little early? Yeah, that's one big-ass understatement if I ever did hear one."

Kuwabara slowly stepped up beside his friend and peered into the two-way glass. "Oh, uh…hey Hinegeshi." To Yusuke, he added, "Dude, what's goin' on?"

"Another mission," he replied grimly. "Another mission that the little missy over here thinks I'm gonna attend to, but has another thing coming." He went to snap the mirror closed, but Kuwabara snatched it from his hand before he could.

"Urameshi! Don't you think that you should at least hear what she has to say before you deem it unworthy of your time?"

Yusuke stared daftly at his friend for a few moments before angrily retorting: "What are you now, some fricken philosopher? I mean, come on! Do you not see that we're still standing in the middle of a goddamn snowstorm, freezing our stupid asses off!" He let out a long sigh before continuing, breathing a puff of visible air into the cold, night sky. "Besides, I'm tired, I'm in some serious pain, and, more importantly, I refuse to miss any more Saturday evening cartoons. Period. End of discussion."

Hiei rolled his eyes. "Whatever that fool wants now doesn't concern me." And within a matter of milliseconds, he was gone, the snowy wind carefully obscuring his light tracks behind him.

Kurama, however, remained where he was standing. Assisting them was the least he could do after Yusuke had somehow convinced the Forlorn Hope to spare his life. With a smirk, he thought, 'And I wonder how long it will take Hiei to remember that he is indebted as well.'

"So I don't really care what she has to say. I've been through a lot already, and I want to go home."

Kuwabara sighed. "Gee, Urameshi. Could you sound any more selfish?"

Yusuke snarled and began to crack his aching knuckles. "You're asking for it, buddy. You're really asking for it!"

"Yusuke…please," came Hinegeshi's tired plea.

Kuwabara nodded, pointing to the red head's distraught expression. "See? You heard the lady. And she even said please!"

Yusuke groaned inwardly. This new mission was obviously going to be unavoidable, wasn't it?

"Alright. Fine." He quickly snatched the mirror back from his friend's hands. "What the hell does the little guy want now?"

"Um, Lord Koenma prefers to discuss it with you up here…in his office. It's quite, uh…" She paused for a brief moment as she cautiously shifted her austere, golden gaze in either direction, lowering her voice to an almost inaudible whisper as she said: "It's quite confidential."

"Confidential, you say?" the spirit detective asked, slowly nodding his head and rubbing his chin with his free hand. He then leaned in real close to the screen, his face contorting into a frustrated snarl: "You seem to forget," he began, his voice level increasing with each word he spoke, "...that I'm currently standing in the middle of fucking nowhere! Who the hell could possibly hear us!"

"Yeah, you could at least tell us who-or-what we're dealing with," Kuwabara agreed. "I mean, is there another hoard of wicked criminals on the loose? Another psychic in need of an apprentice? Or perhaps another beautiful princess in need of rescue—not that I'd be interested in her in any way since I'm with Yukina now 'n all, but still. I'm up for the challenge."

Yusuke raised a brow. "Wait…we're? As in we? As in the two of us?"

Kuwabara grinned. "Well, yeah! I mean you definitely wouldn't have been able to defeat Toguro without me, so I think it would be best if I were to accompany you on every single mission that you're assigned to from now on! Although I do have one rule…"

"Dude, I really don't—"

"I absolutely refuse to be your sidekick. If anything, you should be mine!"

Yusuke smiled nervously. "Heh, heh…sure. You go right ahead and think that."

"I will."

"He's right, Yusuke. Strength is greater in numbers."

The spirit detective grinned as he looked up from his pocket mirror. "So…fox boy's decided to stay after all. Then I'm guessing that was Hiei I sensed disappear moments earlier...heh. I should've known."

"Yes. You should have," Kurama replied, smirking slightly.

Kuwabara blinked in confusion. "Um, I never sensed anything. Was I supposed to or something?"

Hinegeshi's brow began to furiously furrow. "You-hoo! He-llo! I'm still here! (sigh) Look. Would you all please just—"

"HINEGESHI! WHY THE HELL AREN'T THEY HERE YET! For the love of my father—TELL YUSUKE TO GET HIS DAMN ASS OVER HERE…NOW! That stupid girl! She hung up on me again! Dammit-dammit-dammit-dammit-YUSUKE!"

"What the hell is eating him?" Kuwabara whispered, brows quirked and eyes bulging.

Hinegeshi laughed nervously. "Um, as you can plainly see, he's gone totally loco. Turns out we have some startling new news concerning Toguro, but more importantly…we need you to help us track someone down."

"Is he an escaped convict?" Yusuke asked, feeling much less reluctant. "Eh, well…I guess I can be up for a good man-hunt."

"No, she's not. Just please, come quickly! Koenma's starting to—"

"HINEGESHI! WHY THE HELL DOES SHE KEEP HANGING UP ON ME! More importantly…WHY THE HELL DID SHE LEAVE IN THE FIRST PLACE! (sigh) I just don't under…WHAT THE HELL IS IT NOW, GEORGE!"

"Um, well uh, you see sir—"

"YOU STUPID OAF! CAN'T YOU SEE I'M BUSY! SPIT IT OUT NOW, OR FOREVER HOLD YOUR TONGUE!"

"O-okay sir! I'm holding my tongue, sthee? Yesth, anduh I'm leathing nowuh thoo!"

The three boys stared on with concern as Hinegeshi continued to cringe and fiercely grind her teeth. Once she was able to relax her jaw, she smiled sweetly and said, "So Yusuke. Would you please be so kind as to grace us with your humble presence and save us from our leader's wild and demented wrath? I'm sure Kurama would be more than happy to escort you."

Kuwabara pushed his friend's head out of the way so he could get a better look into the mirror. "Of course he will! And he shall be accompanied by the great Kazuma Kuwabara, because he too is greatly concerned about this missing mystery lady in need!"

Yusuke angrily shooed his dim-witted classmate away while Hinegeshi rolled her eyes. "Um…sure. Now, if you'll please excuse me, I'm going to go find myself a pair of earplugs."

And the screen went blank.

The spirit detective frowned as he snapped his communicator shut. "That's weird. Why the hell would they need us to find someone if they aren't a criminal?"

"More importantly, why do they wish to further enlighten us about a demon that's supposed to be dead?" Kurama added, his expression stern.

"Maybe that missing gal's the toddler's girlfriend or something," Kuwabara suggested, unfazed by Kurama's remark about their former adversary. "Although, I'm not sure I wanna know why a talking baby would even have such a thing."

Yusuke shot Kurama a furtive glance as his orange-haired friend walked on ahead, still mumbling to himself. "You don't think he's still alive, do you?"

Kurama quivered a bit as he shoved his icy hands into his pockets. "You mean Toguro?"

Yusuke nodded. "Yeah…him. You don't think, do you? Because if he is, then we are so friggin' screwed."

The fox lowered his gaze to the snowy ground. "Yes. I'm afraid we would be."

The spirit detective grimaced. "So let's hope I'm wrong."

oooOOOooo

George cautiously reentered Koenma's office. At first glance, the room appeared to be empty, but upon further inspection, the horned ogre was able to locate the top of his supervisor's hat, frantically pacing back and fourth behind the large, marble desk on the opposite end of the room. "Uh, sir?" he asked uncertainly. "Is this all really…necessary?"

The blue hat abruptly froze, slowing rising higher and higher until it revealed its owner's fiery brown glare. "Is all what necessary, you stupid buffoon?"

The blue-skinned demon laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head. "Um, well, you know...requiring Yusuke and the others to search for Botan. I mean, the chances they'll actually find her are so slim. You know she's difficult to find unless she wants to be—"

"You dare to question my authority?" the tiny prince bellowed, levitating high above his desk.

"Uh, no sir! Not at all! It's just that—"

"I think now would be a good time for you to zip it George," Hinegeshi warned as she materialized atop Koenma's desk.

Koenma nodded and slowly floated over towards the window, clasping his hands behind his back. "Yes ogre. Listen to the woman. She's got more brains than you."

George whimpered and held up his hands. "But I'm afraid that you're mistaken, my Lord. I wasn't trying to—" He quickly cut himself off as he noticed the red haired ferry girl glaring at him out of the corner of his eye. He smiled sheepishly and made a swift zipping motion across his mouth.

"Dammit Yusuke. Why won't he hurry the hell up! The longer he takes to get here, the more time Botan has to get away! Ug. She knows that the Dark Tournament is coming up in a matter of months, and she knows that Toguro is still alive! Frick, she was here an hour ago when we viewed that blasted tape of his revival! So why? Why now!"

Hinegeshi sighed and rolled her eyes, "Oh for the love of…have you ever stopped to think that it may've been because of your crude little comment about how she was far too 'sexy' to dress like a man? Too lithe? Too 'delicious'?" She shook her head. "Honestly, Koenma. You know how much she despises being treated like a thoughtless object, a weakling—a lifeless piece of food!"

Koenma laughed aloud and plopped back down into his throne-like chair. "Nonsense! I bet it was because she was afraid I was going to make her enter the tournament. Either that, or her stupid cat convinced her to disappear. To think that little bitch has more influence over her than me…it's just plain preposterous."

George gasped, apparently forgetting he had zipped his mouth shut, for he exclaimed: "Sir! You know how much Callie hates it when you call her that!"

"Heh. He must have forgotten what happened last time," Hinegeshi remarked, grinning.

Koenma cringed. "As a matter of fact, I haven't. But, fortunately for me, it looks like as if she wasn't around to hear it this time; so there. Besides, I'm the Prince of Reikai. There's nothing she can do to me that I can't punish her for."

Hinegeshi nodded slowly, rolling her eyes at George as she said: "Of course, Sir. You just keep telling yourself that." The ogre stifled a laugh.

All of a sudden, the large, golden double-doors swung open to reveal four dark silhouettes. One of them raised their arms high in the air and proceeded to step forward into the light, loudly proclaiming, "Alright, Koenma, we're here! And we managed to pick up a very reluctant and ungrateful demon with a third eye along the way too, so it looks like ya got the entire gang at your mercy for this one!"

"Hn."

Koenma slowly shook his head. "So. This is the thanks I get for breaking the rules and allowing live humans to enter my office, huh?"

Yusuke smirked as Kuwabara, Kurama, and Hiei stepped up behind him. "Yeah, Koenma. This is what you get." He haughtily crossed his arms, his smirk curving into a sneer. "Take it or leave it."

"Yusuke, I'd can it before he decides to light you on fire," Hinegeshi snapped, jumping down from the desk to confront him. "Besides, it's crucial that you help us!"

"That it is, Hinegeshi," Koenma remarked, floating up from his chair. "Ogre, fetch me the remote."

"Certainly, Koenma Sir!" George exclaimed, standing up straight. With a quick salute, he was gone.

"And Hinegeshi, would you mind calling the girl again? Maybe, by some miracle, she hasn't yet smashed her communicator to bits."

"I'll try," she replied with a sigh. And with a quick flick of her wrist, she was gone.

Yusuke raised a brow. "Wait a minute. This chick's got a communication mirror? What, are we being contracted to hunt down your sister or something?"

"Or is she more then just a sister?" Kuwabara interrogated, giving the confused toddler a stern glare.

While Yusuke rolled his eyes, Kurama muffled his laughter, and Hiei drew his sword, Koenma stared at him like he had a third leg growing out of his brain. His face then grew rather angry as he retorted, "Would somebody please put a muzzle on him? I'm not exactly in the mood to deal with incompetent fools right now." Under his breath he added, "As if I don't have to put up with enough of them already."

Kuwabara blinked a couple of times in confusion. "Um…what the heck does incompetent mean?"

Yusuke sniggered. "Not knowing what it means should be a clear indication."

"Shut up, Urameshi. Nobody asked you," came his ungrateful retort.

"I had a feeling that this would be an utter waste of my time," the black-haired clairvoyant remarked as he sheathed his sword. "I'll be leaving now."

Kurama sighed. "Hiei, that's exactly what you said ten minutes ago."

Hiei slowly turned, pointing to his expressionless face with his index finger as he replied, "Note how much I care."

"Humph. That just goes to show what a heartless bastard you really are," Kuwabara sneered, crossing his arms and shoving his nose into the air.

Yusuke sighed. "I'd lay off if I were you, Kuwabara. You remember what he said earlier…that he likes to decapitate annoying, orange-haired monkeys like you."

"Actually," Hiei corrected, "I was thinking more along the lines of impaling this time." He smirked maliciously and crossed his arms. "Unless you'd prefer decapitation. Because I'm up for either."

"Good Lord—when will the torment end?" Hinegeshi mouthed as she rematerialized in the corner of the office. It was obvious, by the expression on her face, that her attempt to reach the girl had failed.

Kuwabara screamed and ducked behind the floating toddler. "KOENMA! ARREST THIS FIEND! I mean, you heard him! He's…he's trying to KILL ME!"

As the screaming and arguments continued, Koenma's face grew redder and redder, smoke piled fourth from his ears, and his fists began to violently shake.

The red-haired ferry girl slowly lifted her hand to her forehead and began to count: "Three…"

"Boys…" the Prince softly began, his voice hoarse and short of breath.

"Two…"

"Would you all please…"

"One…"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!"

The talking ceased as quickly as it had began as the four fighters snapped their heads in the booming toddler's direction, eyes wide in bewilderment.

"I have important business to attend to subsequent to our little meeting, and wish to assign you you're mission as quickly and painlessly as possible! But I can't do that if you're all ceaselessly screaming like the stupid SKY IS FALLING!" He paused for a moment to irately gnaw on his pacifier. "Now. Will there be any more interruptions before begin?"

"I'm afraid so…" came his vicious reply.

Koenma's mouth fell open as he gaped at the source of the growling voice. "Oh crap…"

Kuwabara peeked out from behind the infant's small frame, screaming in response: "HOLY SHIT! SOMEBODY CALL THE POLI—oh wait, that would be Yusuke…YUSUKE! DO SOMETHING!"

"Uh, Koenma?" Yusuke inquired softly, ignoring the his screaming friend. "Why is there a giant wild-cat standing in your doorway?"

"I must admit, I had no idea that caracals could grow to such a monstrous size," Kurama mused, looking somewhat baffled.

The huge reddish-brown feline crouched low to the ground, slowly stalking the group as if they were to be its next meal.

"Everyone," Hinegeshi sighed, smiling wanly as she pointed at the angry demon. "Meet Callie: the shape shifting feline."

"It…has a name?" Yusuke squeaked, his face contorting into one of utter bewilderment and disgust. However, it quickly converted into one of fear as he noticed the horrible, toothy snarl the feline had suddenly directed his way.

Hinegeshi rolled her eyes and sent him a quick mental message: 'It's a she Yusuke…a she.'

He laughed nervously and held up his hands. "Right, right—a she, a she! That's totally what I meant! Seriously! Truthfully! Honestly!" To himself he added, 'So would you please stop looking at me like that?'

Satisfied, the angry caracal redirected her snarl towards the cowering prince. "Koenma…you know how much I hate it when you refer to me as a female DOG!"

Sweat poured profusely from the miniature prince's brow as he squeaked, "B-but Callie! I—"

"DON'T PLAY DUMB WITH ME YOU STUPID HALF-PINT! IT JUST DEBASES ME EVEN MORE!" She swiftly zipped past the crowd of boys and jumped onto the toddler's desk, pinning him against the back of his chair with her large brown paws. "And although I loathe the way you treat me, I hate it even more when you find some stupid 'n sick way to humiliate, anger, and frustrate Botan! You remember what I said last time, don't you? That the next time you were to aggravate her in ANY way, I'd come hunt you down and TARE you LIMB FROM LIMB!"

Kurama's body stiffened. 'Did she just say…? No. I must be hearing things.'

As Koenma silently whimpered, Hinegeshi thought it would be wise to speak up. "Callie, I know how much you'd love to savor the sweet taste of revenge right now, but isn't locating Botan more important? I mean, if she didn't tell you where she was going, then something must seriously be wrong. Don't you agree?"

The caracal snorted and she brought her nose real close to the terrified toddler's face. "You got lucky, kid." Reluctantly, she released him from her death grip, took a few small steps back, and stood up on her back haunches, transforming into a small, human-like girl as she did so. "And just so you know, not that it's any of your business, the only reason she didn't tell me where she was going was so that you guys couldn't kidnap me and let Hinegeshi rack my brain."

As she turned, she revealed a pair of narrowed brown eyes; short and spiky light brown hair; sharp, pointy canines; and caracal-like ears and tail left over from her previous form. She wore a semi-short, dark brown skirt with an uneven hem, and matching tank top that meshed well with her lightly tanned skin.

Scowling, she asked, "So who exactly are you guys, and what in Koenma's Dad's name could possibly make you wanna work for His reject-of-a-son?" She made a swift thumbing motion over in the toddler's direction. "Because I wouldn't work for him even if he paid me in golden catnip."

Yusuke smirked. "You know, you're a hell of a lot bigger and scarier as a cat. I mean, you're probably not much taller then our three eyed friend over here."

Callie gently placed one hand on her hip, using the other to flaunt the long, pointy claws she possessed. "Why don't you try saying that to my face, wise ass?"

The Kuwabara smirked as he boldly approached the angry woman. "Eh, ignore him. He's just bad with women." Ignoring the malicious look his friend was giving him, he continued. "I'm Kazuma Kuwabara. The rude guy is Yusuke Urameshi. The quiet one's Kurama, and the short one's Hiei."

"Pleased to meet you."

"Hn."

"Kurama…" Callie mused as she hopped down from atop Koenma's desk. "I used to know a Kurama." She eyed the red-haired fox curiously. "He was an asshole, though. You're not an asshole…are you?" She paused for a moment, seemingly awaiting an answer, but gave up waiting after a couple of seconds and answered her own question: "Nah. You don't seem like the type to harass women. Besides…" She grinned lightly. "You're a lot prettier than he was; at least I think so. Botan would probably disagree, but whatever. That's what makes the two of us so different: our taste in men."

Yusuke rolled his eyes, Kuwabara sniggered, and Hiei snorted. Koenma, on the other hand, looked as if he were about ready to blow another gasket. Fortunately, Hinegeshi had the sense to calm him before he had the chance to erupt.

Kurama tried to smile. He really did. But, for some reason, his mouth refused to upturn. It was as if his brain had shut down, malfunctioned, died. There was something unsettling about this situation. Something he couldn't seem to convince himself wasn't real. Imagined. Aloud, he managed to say: "You flatter me."

"Koenma sir! I finally found your remote! I'm terribly sorry that it took so long. I must have misplaced it, because it wasn't where I had left it last." He sauntered on over to where everyone was standing, smiling widely as he noticed the brown-haired feline standing prominently in the center. "Hello Callie. How are you doing today?"

She reluctantly tore her gaze from the fox to smile at the newcomer. "Fine, thank you. Though, I'm afraid I can't say the same for these two black-haired gentlemen. Especially that one." She slowly shifted her cheerful, brown gaze over towards the scowling spiky-haired demon, her smile broadening. "You know, I heard somewhere that it takes so many more muscles to frown than it does to smile."

He scoffed. "It also takes a hell of a lot more energy to be annoying than it does to be quiet."

"Dude! She's a freaking cat demon! Even I can classify this situation as one where mouths are meant to be kept shut!" Kuwabara hissed, flinching.

The feminine feline titled her head off towards the side and slowly approached the seething apparition. "You know," she began, her smile fading, "I wasn't sure at first, but now that you've spoken, I think it's safe to assume…" She leaned in close to his face and scowled, pointing directly at the bridge of his nose with a clawed index finger: "That I really don't like you."

Hiei remained unfazed. "Am I supposed to care? Because I don't."

Callie slowly leaned back and smiled. "I never asked whether or not you did." Stepping up alongside him, she continued: "Besides, declaring that I dislike you should be a clear indication that I don't give a shit what you think or say either." She then casually strolled past him, her tail swaying placidly behind her. "Oh, and Koenma?" She paused at the golden double doors, her smile curving into an amused smirk. "You can come out from underneath your desk now."

And with that she was gone.

There were a few moments of silence before Kuwabara exclaimed, "Meee-yow! She sure showed you, now didn't she shorty!"

Yusuke smirked. "I gotta agree with him on this one, man. Had that been a physical fight, you'd totally be on the floor cradling whatever was left of your manhood."

Hiei snarled as he turned to face the cackling boys. "And if you two don't shut it this very instant, than I may be tempted to completely remove yours from your bodies."

Koenma took the boys' horrified silence to crawl out from underneath his desk, brush himself off, and snatch the remote from his servant's hands. "Boys," he began, ignoring any further conversing that had initiated. "If you would all be so kind as to direct your attention towards the screen on your left, I can finally begin my long-awaited presentation."

With a quick push of a button, the photo of a beautiful, blue haired woman with vivid, amethyst eyes appeared on the screen. In the snapshot, which was only of her upper half, she appeared to be in the midst of a rapid turn, for her long hair was airborne, swirling majestically around the lithe form of her body.

"This," Koenma began, "is Botan: a rare half-demon with extraordinary power." He paused for a moment to glance over his audience's mixed expressions. "And I need you to find her as soon as possible."

In a situation like this, the words 'holy shit' were an absolute understatement…

Because Kurama had seriously forgotten how to breathe.

ooOOOooo

Well, there you have it. I hope you all, if not most, found this to be somewhat interesting. I have so many ideas for this story. The question is: will I ever find the time to write them all down? Knowing me…probably not.

I will explain what a Veela is in the next chapter, about Botan's past, why Kurama seems to have forgotten how to breathe, and what not. Yes, it does get better, I assure you.

Anyway, feel free to review. They're always appreciated!