Hello, there! I'm Jess-chan of the Nya Nya Neko! This is my first story so be nice!! It's Kurama/Botan pairing cause that's my favorite couple!!! Just to warn you, this may be a little OOC, but bear with me. Now, on with the story!!! :D
cresentmoon-cat: Sorry for not putting you in with the last chapter! I didn't know you reviewed! SORRY! Anyway, thank you for you're review! It always helps!! :D
Summary: K/B-Botan is forced to protect the guys by disguising herself as a guy! But, only one person knows who this mysterious boy with blue hair really is. It's not Hiei, with his Jagan eye and all, it's not Kurama, and it's not any of the girls. It's…
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"-" Words
'-' Thoughts
Past tenseChapter Three: The First Meeting
Botan dragged herself down to her team's meeting place. It was down on the first level, in front of the café. That was good except for two things.
She was loosing her mind from lack of sleep.
And she had no idea where the café was.
Yesterday was the first day of the Tournament, which was only rules. Yep, no fights, rules. Do you know how boring that is to a person who wasn't about to get any sleep at all? So, because Botan had to go back to Rekai for more training from Mitsuko she, again, did not get any sleep.
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"Ok, guys. I'm gonna go for a walk now. I'll be back later!" Botan said as she got up from their game of cards. She grabbed her coat and walked slowly out the front door. She closed it slowly and walked about two steps. Then, she sprinted down the hallway and opened the window at the end. She summoned her oar and jumped. She flew quickly to Rekai, but not quick enough…
"You're late."
Botan looked at the clock. "Only by a minute…" she moaned. It was true; it was now six-o-one. The training was scheduled for six exactly.
"Fifty laps. No oar. No wings. Around the palace. Now." Mitsuko ordered.
Botan nearly fainted. "What?! Fifty laps?!" 'It's not like I could even use my wings anyway… I don't know how to get them to come out again…' she thought bitterly.
"Sixty, because you're wasting my time. It's now six-o-two. Come on, Ether Dragon, you can do a measly sixty laps." Mitsuko said with a slight grin. Botan huffed but went outside anyway.
"On, your mark… Get set… GO!"- It took her almost six hours to complete this task.
Botan almost died as she walked back to the room. Her legs felt like fire was coursing through them. She walked into the room slowly and saw Mitsuko standing before her. Once Botan got through ten laps she left her outside because she got bored…
"It took you long enough…" she muttered. Botan couldn't speak, she could barely breathe. Then, in Mitsuko's hands she saw heaven…
A glass of water.
"If you want it, you have to fight me for it." Mitsuko dared her, following her gaze. Botan was screaming in her head. Two battles took place.
'I want that damn water!'
'Yeah, except she has magic and we don't.'
'I don't care…' was the weak response. 'We can dodge…'
'Yeah, we'll have to dodge like our life depends on it because… IT DOES!'
Botan was barely able to dodge the first blast that came towards her.
This lasted for another six hours.
She never did get that water…
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Botan walked wearily down the stairs. She didn't have enough wit to get on the elevator. Finally, she made it to the first floor. She saw a person at the counter and walked up to them.
"Where's the café?" she asked wearily. The man looked at her oddly, she realized that she must look horrible. Her hair was messy and she had slight bags under her eyes. She had almost forgotten to put her contacts in, but remembered, as she was about to sprint out the door.
"Two lefts down and a right down that hallway." The man said as he pointed to the right. She muttered a thank-you and walked down the hallway.
'Did he say a left and two rights?'
'No! He said two lefts and one right.'
'Wait, didn't he say two rights and one left?'
Botan argued in her brain, but ended up taking two lefts and one right, and then walking right past the boys. She didn't ever notice, or she didn't care, when that reeeeeeaally weak presence in her mind, was suddenly as strong as the other two.
"Tenshi! Tenshi! We're back here!" She heard Yusuke yell. She turned around slowly and just stared at them for a while.
"Wow, here I was looking for you and you were right behind me!" she exclaimed. She walked over to them slowly.
"Tenshi, are you feeling ok? You don't look too good to me." Yusuke muttered the last part. Botan glared at him from tired eyes. 'That's just a nice way of saying that I look like crap…'
"Yes, Yusuke, I'm fine… Just a little tired is all." She spoke in her usual Tenshi voice. The guys seemed to buy it, which Botan was thankful for.
"Well, let's go. Our first team to battle today is Team Maricaibo. I heard they are very strong." Kurama added as they walked out of the hotel. The girls would be watching their first fight today. They'd be arriving sometime around noon. Then, everyone would go out to lunch together and then they would have their fight. Right now, they were going to watch Team Maricaibo's first battle. They were positive they would win. The other team they were battling was only E-class demons easily beat. Team Maricaibo was made up of C-class demons. There was no chance of them loosing.
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"Let the Tournament BEGIN!" the announcer screamed. She was a dog demon with a black tail. She had long black hair and blue eyes. The crowd cheered after she shouted this.
Botan muttered darkly "It begins…"
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"Kaze Shubata. A Wind-type. Upper C-class demon." Kurama told them as Kaze stepped up onto the platform. The fight began. Kaze had long, and I mean long, light green hair. It was almost reaching her ankles. Her eyes were a sharp purple color. It seemed she wanted to get this fight over with quickly.
She threw her right hand in the air. "DARK WIND SPIRAL!" she shouted. Suddenly, a huge tornado- type thing ripped from the sky. It hit her opponent and drew them up into it. Everyone in the crowd couldn't breathe. The air supply was being taken by this tornado. Unexpectedly, A symbol glowed on Botan. It was on the outside of her thigh, the circle of wind. Suddenly, a huge barrier of wind surrounded her teammates and allowed them to breathe in clean, fresh oxygen. Botan placed her hand on her thigh to prevent any of the others to see the light purple glow.
The fight was over. Kaze had won. Her opponent was quickly killed by suffocation, as were some audience members who were too weak to hold their breaths. She began to walk off the platform. Suddenly, she whipped around and stared straight at Botan. Green clashed against purple. The wind-shield disappeared and suddenly, thoughts filled Botan's head.
'He can't be all that powerful…'
'He's one of the legendary Dragons, Kaze. Don't mess with him before the fight…'
'Whatever, Adam, I'm taking him when we fight. I want to see how much power he really holds-'
Kaze looked away abruptly and the thoughts were cut off. Botan realized she had been holding her breathe and remembered how to breathe. She looked over to Kaze again, and then realized something. When was the last time she took that pill?! Slowly, she turned to face the guys.
"I'm just gonna… go to the bathroom… I'll be back soon. Tell me what happens during the next fight!" Botan exclaimed as she ran out of a door and into the hallway. She went to the nearest bathroom and locked the door. 'Shit, shit, shit, shit!' she screamed in her head. She couldn't find the pill bottle. Finally, she found it in her pocket. She fumbled with the lid for a good five minutes. 'Why won't this stupid thing open!?'
Suddenly, she realized her time ran out. The huge clock outside of the stadium rang the hour. It was noon. The last time she took a pill was eight, when she was about to run out the door. She ripped open the cap and nearly poured out the whole bottle. She could feel her real energy coming back to her. No! It had to stay hidden!
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"You guys, I think I can sense Botan."
Everyone looked at Kuwabara oddly. "Stupid, you know that she's on a mission from Koenma. Why would she be here?" Yusuke muttered.
"No, Yusuke. I can sense her too. It's very weak though, faint…" Kurama almost whispered the last part. Suddenly, he was shocked. "It's gone…" he exclaimed.
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Botan shook out the pills and quickly shoved three in her mouth. She swallowed them quickly and immediately felt her own energy receding and her Tenshi energy take place. She sighed calmly and rested her head against the wall softly.
"Koenma's going to kill me for that one…"
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"I'll kill her for that one…" Koenma muttered darkly. He sat in his office with the screen turned on to Botan. He saw what had happened with that fight. He was worried, and it didn't help that Botan was almost found out. She also had to fight one of six demons with no magic of her own.
Suddenly, Koenma's eyes widened and his head shot up. "Ogre! Rewind the tape!" he shouted. The tape was quickly re-wound and Koenma watched again. She took three pills…
"KUSO!"
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Botan walked back out again to the guys who were looking around strangely. "What's up, guys?" Botan asked in her deep voice.
"It's nothing. We just thought we felt one of our friend's energies pretty close even though she's supposed to be gone. It's nothing though. Anyway, let's go find the girls I'm hungry!" Yusuke said, placing his hands behind his head and walking away. The rest of the group followed.
After a few minutes the girls joined the group and they picked out a restaurant. They chose a non-fancy one and all sat down at a table. Botan looked around at her friends. Yukina would come later, and of course,Botan wouldn't be making an appearance. It was only Keiko and Shizuru. (Is that her name? It's Kuwabara's sister…) It would be a miracle if no one suspected anything by the end of this day.
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Botan held herself steady over the sink. Her vision was blurring and she was dizzy. 'What is going on… This can't only be from lack of sleep… But I would just love to rest my eyes a little bit-NO! I can't fall asleep now, our fight is in an hour!' Botan fought with herself. Then, the bathroom door opened and in walked another customer. He looked at Botan strangely and then started to unbuckle his pants. Botan sprinted out the door with newfound energy.
Botan sat back down at the table with the boys. She missed both concerned looks coming from Kurama and Yami. She was too busy concentrating on trying to see her food to notice. Her vision started to turn black around the edges; quickly she looked around the room and took a sip of water. She kept hearing an annoying buzzing sound. Why wouldn't it stop?! She looked around the room again and found that it wasn't buzzing; it was people talking.
'What are they saying? Why can't I hear them? Why can't I concentrate?' Botan thought wearily. Suddenly, a presence in her mind became nearly overpowering. 'What is going on?!' Botan thought hard as she fought to stay in her right state of mind. The presence pushed against her consciousness hard, but she fought back harder. Suddenly, a searing pain crashed through her head. Botan gripped her temple hard and scrunched her eyes shut tight.
"Tenshi? Tenshi, are you ok?" someone asked worriedly. It sounded like Yami… she could barely hear him.
"What's wrong with him?"
"I think someone's trying to attack him!"
"But that's impossible, right?"
"Don't be stupid, Kazuma. Anything is possible!" Botan held her head tighter. The pain got worse. 'Please… Just stop… Leave me alone!' Botan screamed in her head. The pain got worse. She tried to open her eyes. Light blinded her. She closed them again. Suddenly, the pain was gone. She opened her eyes and saw someone there. Long hair… Vibrant green eyes…
"Help…" she barely whispered. Then, the darkness engulfed her, and she lost herself to darkness…
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"Damn… she couldn't take it… Situk, what should I do?"
"Try again later. She'll get the message eventually. She just went into a protective sleep right now. Calm yourself Yami."
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Botan woke up slowly. People were screaming. There was someone beside her. She was leaning on him. Something was wrong. She opened her eyes and glanced around. Then, she realized that she was on the battlefield. Yusuke was fighting someone; it seemed he was winning. He was fighting a man with dark brown hair and dark brown eyes. Botan knew his name. It was Adam.
Kurama was the one beside her. She looked over at him and then back to the field. "What's going on with the fight?" she asked. Kurama looked as though he jumped and quickly turned to her.
"This is now the second fight. The first one was between Hiei and another. Hiei won quickly. Are you feeling all right?" Kurama asked her. She nodded in reply, and immediately regretted doing so. Her headache nearly exploded. She bit back a moan of pain.
"I want to take the next fight." She told Kurama as she looked back up to Kaze. Botan's eyes burned with a hidden fire like none before. She wanted to fight Kaze. She wanted to beat this woman. She wanted to prove herself a Dragon, to her friends, and to herself.
Just then, Koenma, in his teenage form, came running through a doorway and straight to Botan. "Tenshi! I need to speak with you." He called.
"Koenma? You've come to watch too?" Koenma brought Botan over, away from Kurama and the others to speak with her alone.
"Botan, are you aware that you took three pills only one hour ago?" he asked.
"WHAT?!"
"Geez! Be quiet! People are going to hear you. Anyway, instead of only taking one pill, you took three in a rush. I am forbidding you to fight today. I don't even know what the consequences are for taking that many at once. You could Die, Botan!" Koenma told her. Botan's face remained the same.
"I'm sorry, Koenma-sama. But I will have to disregard your orders."
"You what?!"
"I am taking the next fight. No matter what you say, I am going to defeat Kaze Shubata, mistress of Wind. I am going to prove to everyone that I am strong." Botan walked away from her boss, and again stood next to Kurama.
After another ten minutes Yusuke won. Adam was knocked unconscious. Yusuke jumped from the arena with a few major and minor cuts and bruises.
"Ok, guys. Who wants the next fight?" He asked as he looked around.
"I do." Botan stepped away from Kurama and his warmth. She raised her head up as Kaze stepped onto the arena. Everyone looked at her oddly.
"You just woke up. Maybe you shouldn't take this fight…" Yami objected.
"No. She is mine." Botan walked onto the arena determined. No longer was any pain in her mind. No longer were there any doubts upon herself. There was only determination. Determination to beat this fighter; no matter how powerful. Determined to prove to herself that she can fight and protect anyone or thing she cares about. Determined to show her true strength. And determined to release her locked power.
"And the next battle of the tournament- Kaze Shubata and Tenshi… Anyway, BEGIN THE MATCH!" the announcer screamed into the microphone.
"Kill the dragon!"
"Girl Power!"
"Shove his head in the ground!"
"You know, if these demons weren't such low-lives, I'd take offense…" Botan told Kaze. She smirked in reply.
"So you are a legendary Dragon, eh?" Kaze asked as she got into a fighting stance. Botan bent down into a defensive position quickly. "Show me how much power you truly hold, Dragon!" she shouted as she ran to her.
She was quick. Botan would give her that. But she wasn't quick enough to surprise Botan completely. She was able to block or dodge all of her attacks. Finally, Botan released an attack of her own. It was only a punch, but it stayed true. It struck Kaze directly in the stomach. She flew back and hit the ground hard. After only three seconds, she stood up.
Suddenly, a huge wind came around the arena. Kaze was lifted off of the ground. (Like Jin did.) "Come on, Dragon. Isn't the Air your true battlefield?" Kaze mocked. The only thing Botan could do was glare. She still couldn't summon her wings just by a call. She had to touch another dragon. It didn't look like there was going to be any miraculous dragon sightings today. Botan was grounded.
Kaze sighed in anger. "Maybe you really aren't a Dragon… Oh well, It's time to finish you off now." She muttered. Then she raised her arm in the air. Botan knew this attack… It was the same one from this morning. Suddenly, her vision started to blur. "DARK WIND SPIRAL!" she shouted.
The sky grew dark, nearly black. Suddenly, a huge tornado ripped from the sky and came crashing to the earth. Botan bent her knees slightly and prepared herself for the assault. It hit hard. Botan was trapped in the middle, with no way of getting out.
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"There's no way she can survive that without her power!" someone shouted. It was a man. No one heard him though. He had searched high and low for the Ether Dragon, and he finally finds her, only to have her be in the middle of being beaten by a weak C-class Wind demon? Something has to be wrong here…
"Calm yourself, Yami. All will be well. After you battled along side her, you still doubt her power?" Came and answer from another person. The man looked over to where the answer came from. It was a woman. She was leaning on the railing, watching the fight, looking rather interested. Yami's golden eyes stared hard at her.
She had deep blue-almost purple- eyes that scanned over the crowd. She had long black, flowing hair that fell over her shoulders as her head moved from side to side. She was dressed in boot-cut jeans and a tucked in t-shirt. White sneakers adorned her feet as she turned back to the man.
"I think I'll go speak with Koenma now. I hope you don't mind, Yami." She spoke softly and turned away from him.
"I don't mind at all, Melas. Just give me a warning when you drop in next time so suddenly." Yami told her. "The prince probably doesn't like it that much. I doubt the others do either." He muttered as she walked away, her dark blue eyes set on the Prince of Spirit World.
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'I can't breathe!' Botan screamed in her head. The wind sucked all the oxygen out from the air. Other weak demons were swirling around her, most dead, few alive. She was in the middle of the huge tornado and it seemed to rip her apart. She felt another presence enter her mind. It was deep, almost endless… She decided not to worry about that right now though. She was about to die.
'What can I do?! Unless I touch another Dragon, I can't summon my wings… I can't tap into my power, cause it's locked. I'm no better than a ningen right now!' she screamed in her mind. Her lungs were screaming for air, but there was none to take in. 'I'm really going to die… In my first fight?!'
"THIS IS STUPID!" she suddenly screamed. Abruptly, the tornado of wind diminished in tiny pieces that floated around Botan's glowing form. She was giving off a dark blue light that engulfed her body. Unexpectedly, two huge Dragon wings shot out from her back. They were now full size, and sparkled like the sun. Her body was barely even one fourth of one wing, but she didn't care at all. Kaze was right in front of her. It was now or never.
"Finish me off, eh?" Botan said coldly. She flapped her wings so she could stay in the air. Kaze was pushed back a bit just by the air her wings sent her way. Botan quickly got the idea and with one push of her wings, sent Kaze flying into the stadium wall. She crashed hard, but started to get back up.
"Just you wait, Dragon… I'll be… back…" she whispered before she hit the ground again. Botan heard her every word and decided she liked her attitude. 'Never give up.'
Suddenly, Botan's head rolled back and her eyes closed. Her wings disappeared in a bright show of silver as quickly as they came and she began to fall towards the hard stadium. Of course, everyone who knew her was alarmed. She was, at least, fifty feet in the air. The fall would crush her bones! Yusuke began to climb onto the arena in hopes of saving his teammate.
"The rules clearly state that no one, but the fighters and the announcers, are allowed on the arena during a fight. If a teammate of a fighter steps onto said arena, the team will immediately be disqualified and dealt with." The announcer stated while watching as Botan fell from the sky.
"I suppose that being dealt with, in our case, would mean being killed?" Kurama offered. No one replied. They all knew it was true. Botan continued to fall quickly. All eyes were on her small form. Suddenly, a huge gust of wind caught her mid-air. Taking this opening, Kurama jumped with all of his might, caught Botan in his arms, and then landed on the other side of the arena.
"Did you not just hear a word I said?! I said-"
"You said, that our team was not allowed to step onto the arena. I, obviously, did not place my foot onto the arena. I only caught Tenshi midair. Thanks to Kaze I was able to do so." Kurama explains, walking back over to the group. Everyone looks over to Kaze, who indeed, conjured that little bit of wind for her opponent.
"But-but!" the glares Kurama and the other teammates cut her off. "O-ok, then… Well, I guess… Tenshi won this fight! Please just start the next fight!"
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Botan opened her eyes. Blurred faces surrounded her vision; beyond them was darkness. There were five people around her. She couldn't see them clearly. Obviously, she knew them. But how?
"She's finally awake, Situk." Someone spoke. Who was Situk?
"Do not doubt my power as you did hers, Yami." A woman responded. Yami? That was one of her teammates!
"Yami?…" she whispered. Another woman chuckled.
"I believe she has you confused, Yami." She said. "The one she speaks of is her teammate. But we must not give anything away. Do not say anything out of place." The woman warned.
"Of course not, Melas. We know better than that." Another male responded. Finally, the faces became clearer, but they moved from Botan's vision. Slowly she sat up and looked around.
There were two men to her right, and three women to her left. The first man had green hair and yellow eyes. He was dressed in casual clothes, jeans and a t-shirt. The next male was familiar to her. The dark purple hair and golden eyes. This was one of the people who marked her!
Quickly she looked to the girls, but the other lady that was with him was not there. Instead, there was a woman with long, flowing black hair and deep blue eyes. She was wearing a t-shirt and jeans. Another woman was wearing almost the same thing as her. She had shoulder-length brown hair and kind green eyes. She smiled gently at Botan, and Botan smiled back.
The last woman had short black hair but two strands in the front came down to her waist. She had deep, dark eyes. Botan tried to find what color they were. She saw blue, green, and purple. The lady was wearing a simple white robe, like a kimono. The obi was a dark blue color. She was beautiful.
"Hello, Botan. My name is Situk." The last woman said. Her voice was so clear, so pure. 'I wish my voice could sound like that…' Botan inwardly thought.
"Hello, my name is Melas. It's good to finally see you again, Botan. I've been waiting for a while now." The lady with the blue/purple eyes said. Her voice was clear, but a higher note that the last woman's.
"My name is Yami. We've met before." Said the man who placed the mark on her. She wanted to ask, but kept quiet.
"My name is Kazrai. It's nice to speak with you again, Botan." The man beside him said. He had a deep voice, but not as deep as Yami's.
Then, the last woman spoke. "I am called Tsuchi. Hello, again, Botan." She said. Her voice was not as high as Situk's. It was in between.
'Why do they all speak as if they know me from before?' Botan wondered. Then realization struck her. 'Maybe they're all Dragons!'
"Yes, Botan. You are correct. We are Dragons."
OK! End of chapter four! Wow, I now have eight reviews! I'M SO HAPPY!!! -Starts to dance and cry from happiness- ok, everybody, REVIEW!!!
to my reviewers:
Arano Hounou: Geez you look into things. Well it could be Yami, but who knows... I was actually gonna make it only Koenma, but I think I might let someone else in on the little secret. You'll find out in the next chapter! Thanks for you're review! :D
Wolffirl99: Thank you! My friend and I made it up, It's mostly mine though, the plot is! Thanks for reviewing!
Amazon Girl: Thank you very much! I hope to see you in the next chapter! :D
VampireFire: Wow, I didn't know people liked it this much! Thank you for reviewing, here's what you asked for!
Neko no Chaos: I love your screenname! :D Yeah, I like the fighter-Botan too. I guess I'm sticking pretty well to the characters personalities. In some fics, they aren't anything like they're supposed to be! I think you're review made everyone else review! heh, Thanks for getting your input in! :D
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DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWNYU YU HAKUSHO! If I did, I wouldn't be writing this fic, now would I?
CLAIMER: I do, however, own most of the Dragons. Some you have not yet been introduced to, others you know, but you do not know they are Dragons. Heh, I love being mysterious...
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Preview- "Tenshi, are you feeling ok?"… "Botan, you have a serious case of sickness. You must stay in bed for at least three days."… "Who are you really?" "I'm Tenshi." "Don't lie to me. Who are you?"