Just a little oneshot based off of a Tumblr prompt given to me by LonelyDreamer7.
Hiei/Botan are already in an established relationship and this scene can take place any time after Maze Castle and before the events of the Chapter Black arc. Hope you all enjoy!
"Hiei~"
The fire-demon quirked a brow at the sound of the ferry-girl's melodic voice. That sweet, saccharine tone of hers was only reserved when she wanted something from him and, more often than not, it usually ended up being for something degrading and humiliating. She was grinning up at him, hair in its signature pony-tail and dressed in her standard pink kimono. She did not seem to be troubled, so he at least knew that she was not about to rope him into participating in another mission.
"Will you come down here for a moment?" she urged.
Hiei obeyed her request, leaving the quiet solitude of his perch on the highest tree and dropping down to the grassy floor silently.
"Hello, Hiei," she said, pressing a quick peck to his cheek. He pushed aside that embarrassing, yet unavoidable, fluttering that arose in his chest as she continued. "Don't you just look handsome, today?"
Crimson eyes narrowed in slight suspicion as he regarded her.
"What do you want this time, woman?"
"What makes you think I want something?"
"Because I know you," he replied easily. "Now, out with it."
Botan's pleasant expression did not waver; she had long since become immune to his blunt tone and bad attitude.
"It's simple, really," the bluette began. She took a step closer to him, her hands behind her back as she batted her lashes at him. "Promise me you'll do it?"
"I won't make any promises unless I know what I'm getting into first," he replied.
The ferry-girl's lower lip pulled into a pout.
"Don't you trust me, dear?"
"Not when you've got that look on your face," he answered flatly.
"What look?" she attempted to feign innocence, amethyst eyes round and unassuming.
"The one that assures you're up to no good."
"Oh poo," she huffed, dropping the innocent act in lieu of revealing the camera she had hidden behind her back.
The fire-demon eyed the device warily. Botan had gotten into the habit of carrying it everywhere, taking photographs of the scenery or of the others. The small wall that her vanity sat against was practically flooded with the fruits of her latest hobby, so he should have known that it would only be a matter of time until she pointed the lens at him.
"I wanted to take a photo of you," she revealed finally.
Hiei's nose crinkled in distaste.
"Why?"
"I think it would be nice to have, that's why."
"And I think it's pointless," he scoffed.
"Will you just try?" she pleaded. "For me?"
Hiei sighed. Despite all of his posturing, he really was weak for the ferry-girl and, although he would never admit it aloud, he was more inclined to conceding to her way when it was just the two of them. So long as no one else saw the photos, he supposed it would be fine. Staring blankly at the device, he resigned himself to her whims.
"Fine," he acceded. "Just this once."
Botan let out a victorious squeal, fastening the strap around her neck and taking a couple of steps back. She aimed the camera at him, fiddling with the settings, before fixing her bright eyes on him once more.
"Ready?" she asked.
He grunted in return.
"Alright, 3…2…1…"
Hiei expected to see a flash or at least hear the click of the shutter, but none of that occurred. Instead, the woman lowered the device, a frown slanting her lips.
"What is it?" he asked impatiently. Perhaps fortune had fallen on him and the camera had malfunctioned somehow.
"Well, you see…" she began, almost sheepishly. "The thing about photographs is, it's customary to smile when taking one."
His brow furrowed as he stared back at her.
"I don't smile, woman."
"I've noticed!" she replied a little sourly. "But surely one smile won't kill you."
"It might," he muttered stubbornly.
"Please?"
"No."
"Pretty please?" she urged, as if tacking on the word 'pretty' would make any difference to him. She continued on in that same sing-song tune as she pressed a button on the device, "Just one smile?"
He resisted the urge to snatch that damned contraption out of her hands and crush it beneath his boot as she continued collecting useless photos of him and urging him on with weightless words. Eventually she realized that her approach was getting her nowhere and her shoulders fell as she sighed.
"I only want to memorialize your smile," Botan confessed. "Is that too much to ask?"
"Yes," he answered gruffly, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Come now, I'm sure you've got a beautiful smile."
"I don't have a beautiful anything."
"That's not true!" she said, letting the camera hang around her neck as she stepped closer to him. "You've got beautiful dark hair and striking eyes."
He quirked a brow.
"And a cute little nose..." she said, bopping it lightly.
Her eyes landed on his lips now.
"And you've got that downright sinful mouth..." she said, swallowing thickly as her eyes trailed lower. "And a nicely sculpted body..."
"Go on, woman," he urged tauntingly.
Botan's wide-eyed gaze jumped up to meet his as she snapped out of it. Her expression was unreadable for a moment or two, but then mischief pulled at the corners of her mouth and lit up her candy colored eyes.
"If I do something nice for you, will you finally show me that smile of yours?" Botan brokered.
Hiei resisted the urge to smirk, keeping his expression level. Though he did not outwardly show it, he quite liked it when she bargained with him like his.
"What do you say, Hiei?" Botan tested, a hand resting on her hip as she eyed him.
"…I'll consider it," he decided.
"It's settled, then!" she exclaimed, beaming at him brightly. "I'm feeling very determined all of a sudden and I've got a few surefire ways of getting what I want."
Hiei was not entirely sure why she would go through all the trouble of finding his smile when hers was the one worth memorializing, but when she winked at him playfully and beckoned him to follow her lead with the curl of her index finger, he supposed that it did not matter.
Slipping his hands into the folds of his pockets, he trailed after her with the ghost of a smile on his lips.