Disclaimer: I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho.
Warnings: Slight Hiei/Botan (one-sided)
Other: Short short
Fight or Flight
(The Ferrygirl's Plight)
The girl is flying swiftly on her oar, trying to outrun, er, outfly, her pursuers. Her blue hair is streaming out behind her, free of the hair band that had contained it earlier that day. Her pink eyes are set on her final destination: the portal to Spirit World. Only the widened state of those pink eyes and the slightly nervous twitches she shows every so often betray her fear. As she continues flying, she's reminded of a conversation she had had with Kurama, not that long ago.
"Humans have very few instincts left. They've been 'civilized.' They simply don't require those instincts anymore. But one of the few they have left is called 'fight or flight.' "
"Fight or flight?" Botan had asked. She hadn't heard of this before. "Yes. In a panic-situation, humans will either fight back, or they will run away. They won't hold still, at least not at first. Exceptions, like humans abused since childhood, do occur, but the vast majority will respond to a panic-situation using the 'fight or flight' mechanism." "Oh. So, Yusuke and Kuwabara..." "Are fighters." "What do you think I am?" "You're a smart girl, but you're not a fighter. I'd say you'd probably take flight. There's nothing wrong with that, you know. There's a saying, 'a man who fights and runs away, lives to fight another day.' You have to stay alive, and we all understand that. Trust me, none of us our going to think less of you if you run away." "Hiei will." Botan had stated bitterly; the fire demon always thought less of her! He never paid any attention to her, and when he did, it was only to make some scathing remark! Kurama had given her that look, the raised eyebrow and slight half-smile that says 'I know why you said that.' Botan had fidgeted and made up an excuse to leave shortly after that.
On her oar, Botan shifts ever-so-slightly, her face taking on a light pink tinge.
And then, realizing that she's running away, she turns around sharply, surprising her pursuers.
The three green-skinned demons scramble to avoid headlong collision with the now-still ferrygirl, while she eyes them, considering summoning a baseball bat to hit them with.
They land on the branches of nearby trees and snarl at her, showing ugly, rotten teeth, but pointy. Making up her mind, she summons a bat and hurls herself at the nearest one, hitting him straight on the head and probably doing permanent damage. He falls down onto the ground below, and Botan turns to the other two, only to find them leaping at her.
Giving an "eep!" of surprise, she urges her oar to the side, causing the demons to hit each other. They pull themselves up and jump at her again, and again she dodges, managing to hit one demon in the arm.
He scowls at her and jumps again, just barely missing the oar. Breathing a sigh of relief, Botan flies higher, watching the two conscious demons and their knocked-out ally carefully.
Hesitantly, she lowers her oar a bit, and, like feral, starving dogs, the two demons leap at her. Quickly, she flies up again, and tries to hit one of the demons on the way. She misses, and her balance is destroyed.
She falls from the sky with a startled gasp, and the demons reach out to grab her.
Years of practice on her oar, including practice on landings, allow her to skillfully evade their attempts and land on her feet. Keeping a hold on her bat, she brings it up to defend herself.
Fight or flight, Botan. Fight or flight.
A/N - This is my first oneshot, and concrit is always welcome. Oh, and the title and subtitle are meant to rhyme.
