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Cover art done by dA username: Dorapz. Art name: Refugio. Used with permission!
Spirit World. Such a drab and uneventful place. Hiei leaned against the outer wall protecting Koenma's castle, with his eyes half closed. He had been waiting for months now, Kurama inside doing whatever it was Koenma needed his help with. Kurama was more than willing to help show Koenma how reformed he was as a demon, to work off his past sins, and their most recent theft. But Hiei? Well. He was willing to work to clear his name, but wasn't being nice about it. He wasn't willing to sort shelves, research papers, or go over manuscripts with the ogres like Kurama. Instead he waited. He was only willing to fight for Koenma, but unlike Demon World, Spirit World and the Living World weren't full of the kind of violence that required their attention. So he was content to wait.
… Or so he thought.
He hadn't thought he would have to wait this long to fight someone. He had been standing outside for so long, he was beginning to think about wandering inside to find Kurama. But he hadn't thought of a good enough excuse to do so yet. He had been left alone, for the most part while he waited outside. Occasionally, he sensed Kurama checking on him from a distance.
Kurama had insisted that Hiei would not cause any trouble if left alone. Hiei didn't say a word while his partner in crime spoke on his behalf, "Hiei is prone to his rage, but he's also honorable. If he says he won't run, or cause trouble, I assure you, he won't."
"Are… are you sure of that, Kurama?" Koenma warily looked from Hiei to Kurama.
It had irked him that he was being spoken of as if he weren't in the room. Instead of giving in to his anger, he simply turned away, "I'll be outside if you have need of me," He had said, "Listen to Kurama, fool." He left the building, ignoring the other beings that cringed away from him, or watched him go with fear in their eyes. He took his position outside, and waited. And waited. And waited.
Kurama's checks were daily. But he wasn't the only one checking in on him. A curious ferry girl kept peeking over the wall at him. Often times, he ignored her. But occasionally he would glance her way. Every time, he would hear her squeak, and she'd duck away. Amusing as it was, he was becoming bored with her little game. And yet, he was also curious about it. After all, others had peeked to see if he was really there months ago, but they never came back. Only she did. She would check on him multiple times a day and as time went on, the more frequent her checks became. He started using his Jagen eye on her out of boredom. No one was aware of her little game of checking on him, he found out. She never said anything to anyone about it, and he couldn't ascertain what the meaning of her little checks were for. Koenma wasn't ordering her to do it, and Kurama never spoke with her. In the beginning she had seemed cautious about him. But now she lingered after peeking over the wall, as if she were trying to convince herself of something. She left with a somber expression on her face every time.
As Hiei pondered about her once again, he sensed her presence coming nearer. He smirked, deciding it was about time he did something different. He stepped around the corner, watching her approach with his eye. She sat on her oar, slowing as she came to her usual spot, and raised higher off the ground slowly, peeking over the wall. When she saw he wasn't there, she raised herself even higher, resting her palms on the top of the wall.
"Where..?" She whispered as she looked all about.
Hiei leapt onto the ledge of the conjoining wall silently. As she leaned further forward looking for him, he gave her oar a little kick. She squealed and spun upside down. Blinking at him, she righted herself quickly, "What is it you want, ferry girl?" He demanded.
She visibly flinched at his harsh words, "Ferry girl? Don't you know my name, Hiei?"
Hiei tilted his head curiously. She did look a little familiar to him. "... Should I know it?"
She seemed a bit hurt, "It's Botan!"
"What do you want, ferry girl?" He repeated, not bothering with her name.
"Oh, never mind!"
Hiei watched as she flew away hastily. He returned to his spot, leaning against the wall once more, "So this, 'Botan' is someone I should know?" Hiei wondered aloud. He shrugged his shoulders, and sank to the ground, "At least she won't bother me anymore."
Hiei woke suddenly. He had let himself settle for a short nap, his senses still alert. He stood, and was surprised to find it was the ferry girl coming his way again. Having not come near him for more than two days, he had figured she was really going to leave him alone. But she was on her way again, just like before. He growled under his breath, and leapt onto the wall just as she made it there, "What do you want, ferry girl?" He growled.
"I've decided to ignore that you call me that," She said brightly, "because I am a ferry girl, I suppose."
"And you came here to tell me this?" He narrowed his eyes at her, "I grow tired of asking. What is it you want?"
She smiled wide, but he could hear her heart begin beating faster, "You… you just seem so bored, Hiei."
"What's that got to do with anything?" He said impatiently.
She fidgeted on her oar, "Well, you see… I'm bored too."
He stared at her for a moment, waiting for her to let him know the point. When none was given he turned and jumped off the wall.
"Wait!" She cried, flying over to join him, "It's just that Yuske is training with Genkai, and I've gotten so bored not having him around, so-"
"You better have a good reason for bothering me so much," He snapped at her.
She cleared her throat, "Do you… want to play a game?"
"A game?" He raised an eyebrow, "What kind of game?"
"Well, any game! We're trying to relieve our boredom," She smiled cheerfully.
"Forget it," He snapped as he turned away from her.
"Oh, please don't be like that!" She begged, "Would gambling change your mind at all? Why don't we bet?"
He looked back at her curiously, "What kind of bet?"
"If you beat me at a game, I'll leave you alone!"
"Forever?" He asked sarcastically.
"Well, m-maybe not forever," She laughed nervously, "But I promise to leave you alone while you're working under Koenma."
'Fair enough,' He thought, "And if you win?"
"We play another game!" She beamed happily.
Hiei scoffed, "You're so childish."
His comment didn't seem to bother her in the least, "Well? Do we have a deal?"
"… I suppose I am bored enough. I'll humor you, ferry girl."
"Good! Then, as the challenger, I'll pick the game. And I choose," She tilted her head back as she thought quickly, "categories!"
"Categories?" He stared at her incredulously, "Isn't that a children's game?"
"W-well," She laughed, "Well, it's what I choose! And since I chose the game, I'll let you pick the category."
He smirked, "That works to my favor then. I'll just pick something I'm certain I can beat you at. How about… attacks. Yes, that's what I choose. Ready?"
Botan smiled, "Okay then. You start!"
Hiei straightened up, "A – Acid Blast."
"B – Biel Throw," She said excitedly.
"Biel Throw?" He blinked at her.
"It's a legitimate wrestling move!" She said defensively, "So it counts!"
"Alright, fine." He growled, "My turn, then. C – Circles of Inferno."
They continued on through the alphabet for a while. Hiei would never admit it, but he was impressed that Botan was able to answer any of the them, "S – Spirit Gun," Hiei said with much distaste, having been defeated by that very move months back.
"Oh, darn! I could have gotten that one," Botan bit her lip as she thought carefully about the next letter, "Got it! T – Tornado Fist."
"Tornado fist? Where are you learning all these attacks?" He glowered slightly.
"Now, now, Hiei! That's my secret," She said with a wink, "Your turn!"
They continued until they got to X, "Um…" Botan tapped her fingers on the handle of her oar, as she tried desperately to think of a fighting move. Her eyes darted to Hiei's smirking face, "Oh!" She whined, "By that look on your face, I can tell you know of one!"
He shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, "Go on and think of something."
For a few minutes she raked her brain, "OH, I give up!" She sighed in disappointment slumping on her oar. She waited for Hiei to answer the category, and win the game. But when he said nothing, she glanced back him, "… You do have an answer, right?"
He stared back at her before closing his eyes for a moment, "I don't know of any moves that begin with an X." He admitted.
Botan's eyes widened, "Oh…"
They were silent for a while, "Well, who wins?" He finally demanded.
"I'm afraid that makes it a draw." Botan flew back a few feet on her oar, laughing lightly, "I guess we both win!" She added brightly.
"We can't both win," He sneered, "how will that even work? If you're to leave me alone, then how will we play another game?"
Botan thought about it, "Well… how about this then?" She brightened, "I'll leave you alone for a few days, and come back to play another game with you after!"
"Ugh, so you're telling me you'll be back?" He growled with irritation.
"Bingo!" Botan laughed as she flew away joyfully.
He watched her go, piercing her back with a hateful glare. As soon as she was out of sight, he sat back with a huff.
"Well, you seem to be making friends, Hiei. I'm impressed."
Hiei sat up sharply, spotting Kurama emerge from around the corner of the wall, "How long have you been there?" He demanded.
"Long enough," Kurama smiled. "What are you going to pick?"
"Pick what?" He asked, confused.
"Since she chose the game last time, I presume she'll want you to choose the next game you play. Do you have anything in mind, Hiei?"
Hiei relaxed against the wall again, "How about a duel to the death?"
"Come now, Hiei. You swore you wouldn't cause trouble," Kurama continued to smile, knowing Hiei had only meant it half-hearted. "Well, I'll be going then. Continue to be nice to Botan."
Hiei ignored him as he walked away, waiting until he couldn't sense anyone within his vicinity. He closed his eyes as he thought of the game he had played with Botan, and smirked, "She won't be so lucky next time."
Please review!
My first YYH fanfic. Was written for a contest on dA. I wouldn't mind continuing this fic! But I'll have to give it more thought, (and continue watching the show). If you have ideas for games, and bets, feel free to tell me ^.^ If I take this fic further, there's a very strong possibility of it going lemon!