Chapter Four: Life before death
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The house Hiei had occupied, after evicting his old crime boss, was usually quite quiet. Even at sixteen he despised having too many people around him. He didn't really feel like waking up with a sword shoved in his back, because he knew without a doubt that every last living thing in the Makai would do that if they could.
If there was ever any exception to that hatred they all felt it would have been that little blue haired girl. Though she'd probably hate him now, after all he did murder her father and fiancé and neighbors. Come to think of it, he had attempted to murder that random fire demon that had carried her away. Who knew what he'd done with her after that? She was probably lying dead somewhere, decomposing.
His eyes widened ever so slightly; that thought had disturbed him. His heart had clenched at the thought of that kind, beautiful girl-now a woman-decomposing in some ditch. He looked out the small window and scowled, two weaker demons were approaching carrying a sack. If they thought they were going to buy their own freedom, they had another thing coming. These two demons were tasteless and beneath even the dirt they walked upon.
They burst right through his front door, dropping the large sack onto the hard wood floor, the echoing thud sounded very familiar. Almost like that of a body. "Hey old buddy, old pal…we brought you a present!" The uglier of the two shouted, making Hiei cringe inwardly. The only thing worse than this demon's appearance was his voice. The taller, and slightly more normal, of the two winked at Hiei and nudged the bag with his foot, a whimper emitting itself as the sack shifted to get away. "She's a pretty little one."
Hiei caught the sack when it was kicked at him and decided that he'd had enough of those disgusting demons. He dropped the sack on the floor and drew his sword. "N-now man, buddy…don't kill us until you see who we got this time!" They said together, both scared shitless. At risk of looking lenient, and weak, Hiei ripped open the sack with the tip of his sword and paused. Blue hair. Pink eyes. Was she a koorime? No…she was crying normal tears.
Without even looking in their direction, he began to burn them alive. Her face looked familiar. Around her neck he spotted a necklace of black jewels and he turned on the flaming corpses; only slightly regretting that he had killed them so quickly. Obviously they had deserved a slower and more painful death. No matter. He was once again in the presence of the woman he owed his life to. He had only paid back half of his debt.
He knelt down and began untying the ropes that bound her wrists and ankles together. "What is your name." He asked coolly, trying to act like he didn't care if she said anything or not. She just looked up at him with wide eyes and said nothing. She hadn't used her voice in years. Lee and his mate had taken her in, taken care of her and accepted her mute state. But when she had moved out, she'd had a hard time with everything.
Hiei narrowed his eyes at her and scoffed. "Fine don't talk. I prefer the quiet anyway." He hauled her to her feet, but she collapsed quickly. She had no strength because she hadn't eaten since she'd been captured, and they had beaten her for that whole week. Hiei looked her over, trying to figure out why she had just crumpled to the floor like a curtain, and finally noticed the many bruises poking out from beneath her clothing, and the unhealthily skinny form.
He hauled her up again with a grunt and dropped her roughly on his futon. "Stay put." His voice was so deep now, she mused. She could remember when he was only a child, when his voice was deep, yet soft and young. But as she watched him walk into another room, she could see just how much he had grown up. He was short, but he was well built, and quite mature looking. She looked down at her own body and cringed. Almost every inch of skin was bruised.
She dropped her eyes from her arms and legs to the floor. It was the same colour as the walls in the room Amaya and Lee had built for her. She wondered what would happen when they realized she was missing. Would they come to try and find her? Would Hiei kill them if they did? What if Lee's son came? She couldn't let Hiei kill the poor boy.
Hiei walked into his small kitchen with disdain. Those two idiots could not have possibly known of his connection to the woman now sitting on his futon. There was no way. It must have been an absolute fluke. He remembered her immense power over water quite well. He had never seen a demon stronger. So how then, had they overpowered and captured her?
Her throat was dry and she knew attempting to walk to get a drink would only prove to injure her legs even more, so she decided to try something she had not done in years. Bring the water to herself. She closed her eyes and located the closest source of clean water and summoned a small amount of it. It was close so she wouldn't have to wait long.
Hiei would have shouted in surprise at the water extracting itself from the faucet if he had been younger and more foolish maybe, but he knew he was in the presence of a water demon. He followed the string of water into his room and watched as it approached the woman he was sure had to be Botan. "You could have asked for something to drink." He said coldly, breaking her concentration. The water splash to the floor and she winced. She remembered how violent Hiei got when she had touched him when he was younger. Enma only knows what he'd do to her now that she'd spilled water on his floor and futon.
She wanted to apologize, but her voice was still buried deep inside of her, refusing to come to the surface. It was all she could do to whimper pathetically. Now it wasn't that living things didn't cower and whimper pathetically in front of him all the time, but it really did bother the testy fire demon. Especially when he was attempting to be nice to that living thing. He left the room for only a moment and returned with a mug of water in one hand and a rag of cloth in the other.
Botan looked up as he entered the room and half expected him to hand her the rag to clean while he sat and drank the water in front of her. When he made to hand her the mug she didn't move. Hiei scowled when she wouldn't accept the water from him; what was he going to have to do, pry open her mouth and poor it down her throat? Pass it to her through a kiss? What?
She watched his shoulders stiffen and waited for him to do something. "Take the water." He said finally, taking her by surprise. He had decided that he was probably going to have to tell her when to do what and when not to, instead of just gesturing and hoping she figured out what he meant before she starved to death or something. She slowly reached out and wrapped her fingers around the mug; she looked from the water to the annoyed face of the boy she'd been in love with since she first heard his fearful crying.
She took a sip and welcomed the cool liquid as it slid down her dry throat. She tried to summon her voice again, to thank him, but no noise came out. He seemed to understand what she was trying to say however and nodded in her direction before mopping up some of the water on the floor. "I have business tonight. I'll be back tomorrow. Don't leave my house and you'll be fine." He didn't look at her as he spoke, but she smiled at him any way. She had always known in her heart that the demons of the Makai were misjudging the young man in front of her. He did have a heart.
He stood up and walked back into his kitchen, in truth, the only business he had was getting a special surgery. So he could watch over his sister from anywhere, and Botan as well. Part of him had been dying to know what had happened to the blue haired girl after that other demon had carried her off. His mind exploded with another thought. A thought that made his blood run cold and fear grip his heart. She was much older than he was. She probably had a mate that would come and try to save her.
The thought of her in another man's arms sent jealousy spreading throughout his body. He'd just have to be certain to search her mind once he got the jagan eye, and kill her mate. He put some food on the table for her and left quickly. It was all he could do to not turn back and demand that she identify her mate so he could take him out of the way. He could wait to find out. He was patient.
The night had been hard for Botan. She had discovered the food left out on the table for her, but only ate a small portion of it. Her first meal had to be small. But in the morning she could eat more. Her dreams had been plagued with memories of the things she missed the most. Her mother, her half-brother, the ogres, even Minna.
When morning came and she woke from the dream, she saw Hiei lying unconscious beside her. She didn't scream, or jump out of the bed; she just watched his chest rise and fall softly before she spotted the slightly bloody bandage wrapped around his forehead. She climbed off the bed gently and walked slowly into the kitchen. She didn't want to wake Hiei up, because with a head injury, he should be resting as much as possible.
Through a foggy mind he processed the sound of a plate dropping on to the table. He attempted to sit up, but lost his balance when he realized his bed was empty. He opened his eyes and looked around groggily. Where the hell had that woman gone? She had been here just before he passed out…they didn't take her from him did they? "Fuck!" He groaned and pushed himself out of bed.
Botan had lost her grip on the plate as she'd been thinking about Hiei. She cringed when it hit the table with a loud clank and she just knew she'd woken Hiei up. She heard him moving around and when he swore she rushed in to the room. He was standing up by now, although he looked highly unstable. She walked over to him and pushed him backwards slightly so he fell back on the bed. He looked up at her and relief flooded through his mind. She was still here.
She turned to leave the room, so she could retrieve some breakfast for him but was stopped by his pain filled voice. "Where do you think you're going?" She turned back and smiled at him, "Kitchen." She said softly. Her voice was foreign to her own ears, but it seemed to sooth his worries.
She piled some bread, fruits and vegetables onto a large plate and brought two mugs filled with water. He seemed to be sleeping again when she reached the bed, so she set the plate down on a small side table and sat down on the bed. She brushed his bangs away from the bandage on his forehead, being careful not to touch the now very bloody bandages. She moved to tap him on the shoulder, but thought better of the idea. He might forget she was the one with him, he might attack her if she catches him off guard.
"Hiei." She whispered into his ear, making one of his eyes slide open and turn in her direction. "What?" He asked, annoyed that the woman woken him up again. "Blood." She said simply, pointing to the bandage on his forehead, and he scoffed at her. "Of course there's blood. Old blood." She shook her head, "More blood." She shivered every time she heard her own voice.
He didn't seem to believe her and she frowned as he closed his eyes again. She gently grabbed his wrist and brought his hand up to his forehead and pressed it lightly to the bandage, letting the blood soak through onto his hand. "Shit." He groaned, pulling his wrist away from her, "Go get me some bandages. They're above the sink." She walked out of the room, smiling that she had convinced him.
She returned with the bandages and sat down beside him. When she tried to undo the old bandages he grabbed her wrists tightly. "I'll do it. Go away." She flinched slightly at the tone, but left the room quietly. He obviously didn't want her around. But where was she to go? She had no idea how far she was from her home. And it had already been eight days; nobody was looking for her. She collapsed onto one of the chairs in the kitchen and felt a small tear roll down her face.
She focused on it and caught it before it hit the ground. She stretched it as wide as she could and draped it over her arm like a cloth. She used to be able to actually turn it into a cloth, but she had long since forgotten how. She willed it over to the sink, but it wouldn't move. She watched as it moved on it's own, and became a teardrop shape again. She was so startled that she didn't even hear the footsteps approaching her. "Onna." She yelped and jumped out of the chair.
She stared at Hiei for a moment, missing the amused smirk at first. She was about to leave when his smirk caught her eye. She thought he wanted her to leave and get out of his house, but she was drawn back to him. His ruby red eyes were enchanting; the smirk placed firmly on his soft lips was so tempting. She had never thought that she would be able to get so close to Hiei again. She had dreamt of the moment she could be so close, but remembered that in her dreams he kissed her and whispered sweet nothings to her while they watched a sunset that lasted forever.
"Sorry. I'll go." She murmured, bowing her head and walking towards the door that led outside. He was caught off guard for a moment. Go? Go where? "What?" She didn't turn around; "You said go away." He scowled at her as she kept on walking. He hadn't meant leave the house. He just didn't want her to see the jagan eye until it was completely healed. It was a gruesome mess right now. He moved forward quickly and grabbed her shoulders, stopping her attempt to leave abruptly. "I didn't mean you could leave this house." He said calmly, trying to keep his amusement out of his voice.
She shrugged his hands off her shoulders and reached out to grab the door handle. "Onna, cut that out and go lay down." She froze and turned back to look at him. His stance was quite comical. He reminded her of Amaya the first time she had tried to sneak out to find Him. Left hand on the left hip, right hand pointing at the bedroom, scowl over his lips, feet placed directly below his shoulders. She fought back a giggle and realized her own mother had used that exact pose many times as well. "What ever you say, mother dearest." She said as she walked by him.
Hiei was taken aback by her response and twitch a couple of times before shaking his heard. 'Did she just call me MOTHER?' He followed her into the room. She felt a few tears roll down her face at the memory of her mother and Amaya. She couldn't help but wonder if her mother was watching over her from heaven. She wondered if Amaya was worried…if Lee was still tucking his daughter's in telling them that they shouldn't worry. She felt very lonely all of a sudden. She felt like she was the only person for miles, unable to reach out, unable to call for help.
He watched her curl up on the bed and groaned inwardly. Great, she was crying. He climbed onto the bed behind her and wrapped his arms around her small form. "Don't cry. Just go to sleep." He whispered into her ear, making her shiver as his warm breath tickled the back of her neck. The last thing she remembered before she fell asleep was the gentle thrum of his heartbeat, beating in time with hers.
"Botan!" She swatted her hand in the direction of the voice. She didn't want to wake up. She wanted to continue sleeping in the arms of her beloved fire demon. It took her only another minute to realize she was alone on the bed. She shot up and looked around the room wildly, "Hiei?!" She spotted him tied to a chair, unconscious. "Botan. Calm down, I came to save you from him." She turned to look at the speaker, "Lee…" She could see Amaya and their son Konan standing behind him.
"He…he's not hurt is he? You didn't hurt him, did you?" She asked as she rushed over to Hiei's unconscious form. "No. I only knocked him out." Lee said calmly. He knew Botan's heart still belonged to that evil little fire demon. "I want to stay." She pleaded with Lee, "Please…I don't want to go…" Amaya was taken aback by the amount of words Botan had used so far. That girl had never once spoken a single word while living under their roof.
Konan looked from his father to the criminal they had tied up. He didn't like the thought of Botan staying here. She was like a sister to him. "Lee. We know she's safe." Botan turned to Amaya and blinked, most people would not exactly call being found sleeping beside the Hiei a very safe place to be. "You told me once that he was not as violent with her…and it doesn't look like she's been hurt."
Lee tapped his fingers against the bed a few times and sighed. "Okay. But Botan, you have to promise to keep in contact. We've been worried sick for eight days." Botan smiled at him and ran at him, locking him in a hug. "Oh thank you Lee!" She squeezed him tightly before tackling Amaya with a hug as well. "I'm just glad you found your voice, dear little Botan." Amaya said happily, returning the fierce hug.
Botan gave Konan a quick hug as well before running over to the chair Hiei was in. She began untying the ropes, and tossed them aside. "Lee would you help me put him back on the bed?" The taller fire demon nodded and helped her carry his unconscious body back to the bed. Lee gave her another quick hug before leaving with his mate and son. Taking her spot beside him, Botan never noticed the smirk resting on Hiei's lips.
The sun shone through the window brightly, bathing everything in light. Shifting to get the sun out of her eyes, Botan buried her face into the chest of the sleeping body beside her. She drew it closer with her arms and ignored the grunt of protest. Hiei groaned and tried to pry her arms off his body. If she got much closer their skin would melt together. He could feel her breasts rise and fall with her breathing, and it was a very pleasurable feeling to be sure.
"Let go. I have things to do today onna." He tried to pry her arms off of his body, but she refused to let go. He cursed as he felt a familiar energy approaching his home. One of his better associates, Youko Kurama. Botan could feel the approaching energy, but ignored it. She didn't want Hiei to leave. This moment was something she had dreamt of. And nothing short of a spirit world raid would pull her away.
"Botan let go." He hissed, trying to get free. When she still refused to budge he growled, "I won't hesitate to burn you if you don't let go." She flinched and retracted her arms. She crossed them in front of her and rubbed her hands over the place where her scars from the last time he had burnt her resided. Her heart skipped a beat and she tried to get as far away from him as she could without falling off the bed.
He watched her flinch away and rub her arms and felt a twinge of guilt. He hadn't thought she'd react to his threat. He'd almost expected her to scoff and hold on tighter. He reached out to grab her arm but she flinched again and he withdrew his hand. "I have to go." He said quickly, leaving the room before she could flinch again. It hurt him to see her cower away from him. She was the only one who had never been afraid of him before.
He walked out of his house and came face to face with his associate. "Let's go." His silver haired companion rolled his eyes at the not-so-eager looking fire demon. "The job's been put off. I just came to tell you we'd be heading out next week instead. There was…some unexpected interference. Somebody killed the two idiots in charge of negotiations. Hiei." He rolled his red eyes at the fox demon, "They had it coming."
Kurama crossed his arms, "I'm sure they did. But you could have at least waited two days to kill them. And who exactly do you have in there?" He tilted his head towards the house and Hiei twitched slightly, "That is none of your business, nosey kitsune."
Botan could hear the conversation between Hiei and the other demon but her mind didn't process anything that was being said. All she could think about was Hiei's threat. She had thought that maybe he liked her more. She'd thought he was being nicer. But he still didn't like her. She should have figured. She got off the bed quietly and made her way over to the window. She didn't want to force her company upon her beloved fire demon. Obviously he didn't like her very much.
She climbed out the window, landing as softly as she could. She waited to see if he'd heard her before sprinting off into the forest. She welcomed the warm sun on her skin and the cool breeze on her warm body.
Hiei didn't hear her climb out of the bed or jump out the window, and he wouldn't have realized she was gone if Kurama hadn't decided to tease him. "Well, that 'none of my business' is getting away." "I didn't hear anything." The silver haired fox smirked at his younger friend, "Oh, so the blue haired woman didn't just jump out your window then?" Hiei spun around and just barely caught sight of her blue hair as she disappeared into the tree line. He contemplated running after her for a moment, but decided against it. He'd wait until the annoying kitsune in front of him was long gone. He didn't want to look like he cared all that much.
"She'll be back." He said simply, more to reassure himself than Kurama. She wouldn't go far before she turned around. She obviously still liked him, since she had begged that bastard demon that had tied him up to let her stay here. With him. So she'd come back. Right? "Whatever you say. I'll leave you to wait for a woman to come back to you. Never mind how stubborn women are." "Shut up fox." Hiei snarled at his comrade's retreating back. As soon as Kurama was out of sight, Hiei rushed back to his room and looked out the window, trying to spot the troublesome woman he had developed a strange fondness for.
I wanted you to know I love the way you laugh
He couldn't even make out her vague figure any more. Damn that woman was fast. He gripped the dull brown curtains tightly and clenched his jaw shut. 'She'll be back.' He repeated over and over in his mind for almost half an hour. Realizing he was being pathetic, waiting on a woman, one that wasn't even that attractive by most standards, he stormed out the front of his house heading for the closest town. He wasn't going to waste his time waiting for a woman who obviously despised him now. There were plenty of women he could spend time with. And he wouldn't have to worry about them still being in his bed the next morning.
I wanna hold you high and steal your pain away
Botan kept running for almost two hours. She had no idea which way she was going or if she would even find somewhere safe to stay the night. All she knew was that Hiei wasn't coming after her, proving her theory that he truly did hate her, and all his recent kindness had just been an act. He was probably out celebrating that she was gone right now. Him and his buddy. She felt her heart aching and a tear slid down her face. He really did hate her, didn't he? Sixteen years now she'd hoped he would grow to at least like her.
I keep your photograph; I know it serves me well
He made his way into a crowded bar and sat at the counter. He knew this particular bar quite well. The owner paid him for protection. So he got everything free. The bartender didn't even ask for his drink order, knowing he always got the same thing. He took a swig of his drink and looked around. Not one of the women in this bar was attractive in the least. But he could change that with enough alcohol. He was determined to forget his blue haired water demon tonight. He'd dwelled on her for far too long anyway.
I wanna hold you high and steal your pain
She didn't stop running until the moon was high in the sky and she had reached a small town. It was quiet in the streets as she looked for an inn. She wasn't particularly tired, but she knew it was far too dangerous to be out this late at night. She spotted the inn from down the street, and realized that she had no money as she walked towards it. She was so caught in her thoughts that she didn't hear the footsteps behind her.
'Cause I'm broken when I'm lonesome
And I don't feel right when you're gone away
Several drinks later Hiei was ready to leave with one of the more attractive women in the bar, though he didn't think she was as beautiful as the blue haired Botan he was so fond of. He led the woman to his house without so much as a second thought.
You've gone away, you don't feel me anymore
Botan barely had time to turn her head when a bulky demon slammed a blunt stick into her head, knocking her unconscious. The last thing she saw was a startled demon in the distance with silver hair she had seen before.
The worst is over now and we can breathe again
An hour later, the dark haired woman Hiei had brought home stormed out of his front door, growling angrily. She could not believe the insult. He had called her Botan. Who the fuck was Botan! It wasn't like she had expected him to keep her around all that long, but he could have at least called her by her own name.
I wanna hold you high, you steal my pain away
Botan could see a bright white light. And as a vague figure began to approach her, she felt herself float out of her body. What the hell had happened? She looked down and saw her body lying in a pool of deep, velvety red blood. "Hello Botan." She looked up at the ferry girl from the Rekai but couldn't find the will to speak. "If you'll come this way, Lord Koenma would like to see you personally." She stared at the brown haired spirit before her and tried to figure out how she knew that name. Koenma. It sounded so very familiar.
There's so much left to learn, and no one left to fight
Hiei was racing through the forest. Deciding that enough was enough. If Botan wasn't going come crawling back, he'd just have to go and drag her back. No other woman was going to satisfy his need for company now. He kept running, going as fast as he could in his impaired state.
I wanna hold you high and steal your pain
Botan followed the ferry girl into a portal of swirling purple lights. She looked back one last time and saw the demon that had struck her down had ripped off one of her arms. He disappeared from view just as he sunk his fangs into her bloody and bruised flesh. She blinked and found herself in a beautiful and altogether familiar palace. She took in the family portraits on the walls, as she was led towards an office. The last one she saw had a very familiar little blue haired girl.
'Cause I'm broken when I'm open
And I don't feel like I am strong enough
Hiei picked up on the scent of blood a few miles from the small town Botan had stopped in and swore to himself. 'Shit. If that's hers, I'll never forgive myself.' He pushed himself onward, following the smell of blood. He burst into the village about the same time a fat and disgusting demon ripped a leg off of the bloody corpse in front of him. He stalked over to the fat pig demon as it began to devour a second limb and shoved him away so he could see the body.
'Cause I'm broken when I'm lonesome
And I don't feel right when you're gone away
When she stepped into the office Botan nearly fainted. Sitting behind the large desk was her half brother. "Koenma?" She said unsure, unable to believe that this could even be real. "Long time no see, sister." Koenma said grimly. He had always hoped that the next time he saw his sister, she would not be dripping spirit blood all over his clean office. But, here she was. Dead and bleeding. A victim of a pig demons cannibalistic hunger.
'Cause I'm broken when I'm open
And I don't feel like I am strong enough
Hiei stumbled back in disgust. There was so much blood. Her hair was stained and matted together, her eyes were open and glossy, lifeless. She was missing two limbs, and blood was still oozing out of her. He threw his hand over his mouth and ran away as quickly as he could. He was too disgusted to even kill the bastard demon that was eating the woman he'd become so fond of. He felt the bile rise in his throat and launched himself towards a bush, vomiting until his stomach was void of everything.
'Cause I'm broken when I'm lonesome
And I don't feel right when you're gone away
"Botan…I want you to be a ferry girl." Koenma said strictly. He would not even consider sending his sister to hell, and he couldn't let her into heaven if she didn't do community service for a century or so. Botan stared at her half brother for a minute before shaking her head. "No. I can't…I won't. I just want to go and rest in peace…Brother please?" Koenma tapped his fingers on his desk nervously; "I can't let you rest yet. Your record isn't clean. You'll go straight to hell."
'Cause I'm broken when I'm lonesome
And I don't feel right when you're gone
"Can you at least make me forget?" She asked softly, knowing there was only one way she'd get to rest in peace. Koenma nodded and hit a button on his desk, calling in an ogre. "How much do you want to forget?" He asked sympathetically. He had just witnessed her death on the screen in front of his desk. "The last thing I want to remember is the day before I first found Hiei." She murmured softly. It made her heart ache to even think about forgetting Hiei. But she had to do what she had to do. "Of course. George, take her to get her memory erased."
You've gone away, you don't feel me anymore
Hiei made it home several hours later, still vomiting every now and then as he recalled the amount of blood that was still pouring out of her body, even after her heart had stopped. He saw Youko standing at his front door, but just walked right by his associate. He didn't want to talk to the annoying kitsune. Not right now. Kurama watched his short friend lurch through his door, green in the face, "You should have just gone after her." He said smoothly. He hadn't attempted to save the girl from the pig demon because he knew the first blow had killed her. "I don't know what you're talking about baka. I drank too much." Kurama walked off, shaking his head slightly. His silver hair swayed behind him, "What ever you say Hiei."
Botan stepped out of the office, a whole new set of memories swimming through her dazed mind. She grinned happily at everyone she passed by on her way back to her brother's office. For the first time in many years, she couldn't feel the cloud of despair that had swamped her heart. All she could feel was joy for being able to work so close to her little brother.
Hiei didn't bother leaving his house for a few days. He had never felt so disgusted with himself and the majority of the demons he worked around.
Ta-Da. Chapter number four. The lateness is made up for by the length. This puppy is almost nine pages long!
I realized, as I re-read chapter three, that I made Hiei the wrong age. He was supposed to be eight, not seven. My bad. I'll repost the one later, probably.
Sorry this one took so long. I couldn't decide what song to use, or how to make it go. I ended up with one sad chapter.