Botan sits under the tree, legs crossed. She stares at the foliage, her mind numb. It is precisely for that reason that she enjoys it. Her line of work never really offers any opportunity for relaxation. In fact, the blue haired deity can't remember the last time she's had time to just be.
(But she can often be found ferrying souls. For that she does have time and inclination and an order from up high. Botan always has time for death and its newest additions.)
Contemplating nothingness, she shifts slightly, a smile spreading on her face. Death – which she isn't, even though many think she is – doesn't scare her. She is already a spirit. That she can assume a solid form matters little when she is just a sprit.
"You know, thinking too hard might actually damage you," is whispers in Botan's ear, making the woman jump up in fright and surprise. Yusuke's ever-present grin and his slanted eyes make her hit him, hard.
"It's too late to pretend I don't know you," she murmurs, not moving from her spot. Curious passers stare at them both. A flash of irritation passes on her features.
The truth of it is that Botan views him as a brother. Yusuke himself considers her a younger, annoying sister – although between them she is the older one. Botan frowns, eyes squinting. She glances at the sun and expertly ignores Yusuke's yells of protest.
(After all this time of knowing him, Botan still finds him incomprehensible. Not in a bad way. Yusuke just tends to surprise her. She should have been used to it, but she isn't. She won't ever be and that's comforting. Unlike other things she won't delve into.)
The others hurry along, Keiko actually hitting her boyfriend upside the head. She scolds him loudly and gathers quite a bit of attention. Yukina hangs back, a look of confusion on her face and Botan smiles indulgently at the two. Before she knows it her eyes search the group for that one person she told herself she wouldn't look for.
(But she's a liar, liar, liar. Her eyes do search and once they find him, Botan hold his gaze with hers.)
A shiver travels up her spine as amethyst clashes with emerald. Botan sighs contently, her hand rising in a simple wave. Her smile brightens without her knowing and she's quite lost. She's been doing this for too long now. But long enough to understand the mechanics of what she's feeling. Unfortunately, understanding is of no help to her, because she also accepts what's in her heart.
Little by little, day by day, she falls even more in love with Kurama, former thief of Makai. It started out innocently enough and now she's trapped. Such a sweet demise, Botan reflects. That delicious tremor only he can bring out of her is suppressed, lest Hiei makes a comment. The small demon is quite perceptive and not at all given to minding others' feelings unless their name is Yukina and they happen to be his twin sister. Botan being neither can count herself lucky that Hiei only smirks in her direction.
(She has half a mind to give him a glare but holds back. The fire in his eyes warns her away as always. That, and the fact that Kurama does seem to treasure his friendship, despite Hiei's misgivings.)
Kurama's easy-going manner is an impenetrable wall. Of course, his mind furiously works to decipher the signs Botan gives. Hiei snorts at his side, his eyes rolling. The redhead's attention snaps back to the deity who is now giving all her attention to a hyperactive Kuwabara.
"Pacifier breath is really making you work your fingers to the bone? Hasn't he heard that slavery is not legal?" Botan looks genuinely amused and Kurama lets a smile of his own show. Kuwabara's indignation is almost palpable. The tall teen turns to Yukina, declaring that his honour code demands he rescue Botan.
"It's amazing," Yusuke interrupts his friend's passionate speech. "You actually remember that slavery has been abolished?"
"Shut up, Urameshi! You punk!" And that's enough for the two of them to get in a rather loud quarrel. There's no stopping them.
(And in this time, Youko probes Kurama. The kitsune summons some provocative images. He is so good at that. Kurama would be fazed if he hadn't actually seen them a million times over in his dreams.)
"You'd think that they would have grown up." The voice is Botan's and Kurama turns his head to her sharply. "They are the same. Everything is the same."
"Is it?" Kurama doesn't mean to alarm her. "I suppose you are right." For a brief second she looks at him, surprise shining in those eyes that haunt his every fantasy.
There is something quintessential feminine about Botan. It's not that she carries the name of a flower or that her stare is a gentle caress on his face; it's not her lips that part or the slim wrist that moves with her hand upwards. Kurama can't name it but she appeals to him with her azure hair and bright eyes and slender, elfin frame.
He would give anything at this moment for her statement to change. But, true to form, Kurama is unmovable in this. Still, his spiritual energy pushes towards her, latching onto her soul. It's an intimate sort of connection. Gratification is a whisper that slides from his spirit to hers. What they are doing is not without risk.
(In reality they are Hades and Persephone. She tries to escape through his fingers, all her schemes futile. Kurama can read her like a book. The pomegranate seeds are already past her lips and down her throat. The red juice is smeared on her lips.)
Youko relishes in the feel of her ki brushing his. But his is a feral joy, tempered by the human side's more warm pleasure. Contrary to what other might say, Kurama is both demon and human. It is just that each half of him has a different manifestation and instincts of its own.
"So what do you think of my plan?" Kuwabara breaks through the shroud the two constructed.
"It's stupid; just like you," Hiei quips. A knowing smirk touches his face for a split second.
A/N: The word that inspired this drabble: aeonian - eternal. Hope you liked it. If you do, I might continue.