Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or the characters. I do not own any of the songs I use, but I did buy the songs. Never forget to support the artist ;) Anyway, this will be the first chapter with a fully instrumental piece, so if you want the full effect, like I suggested last chapter, listen to the song when you go through the scene. I feel it will enhance the story, especially those instrumental pieces. The song I'll be using in here is "O Sacred Head Now Wounded" by Jim Brickman. He's an excellent pianist that my mother and I actually had the opportunity to see in concert recently. Most of the instrumentals are by this artist, for his music inspired some of my favorite scenes for this story. Also, I don't own "And We Danced" by The Hooters.

Thank you to those who reviewed last chapter. I'm really glad that you are enjoying the story. Again, sorry it's taken me so long to get it updated. I feel that once the story picks up, it'll be much easier. I have many scenes planned for the later chapters, but it seems like this story hasn't picked up a life of its own in the beginning. Still, I hope you enjoy this! Thanks for reading!


Botan sat at the piano, slurping up the last remaining noodles of her lunch. The day following the first rehearsal, she knew she'd be busy. She had an exam that morning for one of her basic studies courses, a nice and easy one, thankfully. She had been so caught up with the play and songwriting that she hadn't had much time to study.

True to her word, she met with Brigitte at noon and let the girl play her song while she critiqued it and offered her advice. Brigitte was actually very thankful and invited Botan to a party her dorm was having that weekend. Botan hesitated, giving the girl a noncommittal answer. Her brother had told her of the couple college parties he went to, and he always regretted them. Botan didn't think she belonged in that kind of situation.

By the time Brigitte left, she had about a half hour to eat her lunch before Hiei would show up. She basically planned to hide out in the chorus room all day until she was kicked out in the evening for class. In the meantime, she was taking another glance at the script. The next day, she and Hiei would be rehearsing the scene where Preston and Hope would meet, interacting for the first time, and then they would dance to some old eighties song. Botan loved eighties music, but she and Hiei had not been able to find a song that would fit the feel of the play. Hiei had been surprised that Botan rejected every song he did. Her ear and her understanding towards his vision impressed Hiei immensely. He hated working with others and only put up with those he somewhat trusted. This woman, who seemed like nothing when he met her, managed to earn his trust in the weirdest ways, and he found he worked well with her just as well as he did with his own best friend.

Of course, Botan wasn't privy to Hiei's thoughts, and so she kept many of her opinions to herself unless Hiei pried them out of her. He had yet to get her to realize that he actually needed her feedback. After all, they needed to make sure they meshed well on every scene. Hiei knew she hadn't gotten far in the script. She was incredibly busy preparing for her own opportunities, and she had less time. According to Yukina, she needed to submit a CD by the end of the semester to her advisor to get approval on what songs she could play during her portion of the recital that would be held a month before his play would air. Where her problems were not his, she mad his problems hers, so he offered leniency. She was the only one he wouldn't harass about memorizing her lines immediately. This was her first time acting, after all.

He found her in the chorus room at the piano with an empty lunch container sitting on top. Botan was completely unware of his presence, playing a beautiful melody he hadn't heard in a while. It was some church song, O Sacred Head Now Wounded. He remembered hearing it only a handful of times in his life when his mother brought him and Yukina to church. Despite his negative, dark disposition, Hiei never minded church. He didn't know if he believed in anything, but his mother had. It was a part of her, and so he learned the prayers and knew the majority of the readings. Of course, he was young when she died, and after he was separated from Yukina, he no longer worried about church or praying. Instead, he focused on survival and making something of himself, which was difficult to do for a child abandoned on the streets.

Hiei leaned against the wall by the door careful not to make a sound. He had never heard Botan play something like this. Well, that wasn't fully true. He clearly heard her, or else he'd have never brought her on as his collaborative songwriter, and he heard her play the first songs at rehearsal. Still, seeing her was different. When they worked together to write songs, she was careful, precise, and guarded. Watching her now as she moved while she played was different, slightly intoxicating. It was always amazing to see someone, anyone, get lost in their mind and work this way. Nothing else mattered, though if Hiei interrupted, she'd become guarded again like the time he had first heard her singing. It was this freedom she possessed that drew him to her for his own play.

The way she played the song was like nothing he had heard. It was deep, low with a sort of sincere heaviness to the song becoming lighter as she reached the second verse. It sounded both passionate and mournful, yielding to sad celebration. Given the context of the song, she had seemed to capture every emotion that could be felt. Hearing it had awoken a feeling in Hiei that he had long kept buried since his mother had passed away. His impassive gaze softened as he continued to watch Botan, trying to ignore the feeling of longing he felt for those good times he remembered with his mother. It surprised him how difficult it was to hear the music, but he remained quiet until Botan's rendition tapered off into silence.

As Botan took her hands off the keys, she breathed a sigh of relief before reaching for her tape recorder and stopping it. She hadn't really been planning on working on something besides her main piece for her portfolio, but when she still couldn't come up with a good way to end that one, she started adlibbing and found part of a familiar melody. As soon as she heard it, she began to focus on that song. Since then, she had been working on her own rendition of the song. Of course, whenever she played, she got really into the music, closing her eyes and letting herself feel it rather than looking at the keys.

Because of this, she hadn't realized anyone had been watching her, not until she picked up her tape recorder and turned around on the seat. She froze, eyes wide, as hers met his. His expression had her stunned speechless. He looked distant, yet his eyes held a sense of warmth that she had not once seen from him. Almost immediately after their eyes met, Hiei became guarded once again and uncrossed his arms walking up to her. "Let's get to work," he stated simply.

Botan was surprised by the harshness of his voice, wondering what had caused him to be irritable. For a moment, it seemed like he was fine. She was starting to learn to read his behavior and only some of his emotions. Hiei had seemed so relaxed seconds ago, and now he was acting in the crass matter he had when he had stopped by hers and Yukina's apartment. "U-Uh…" she stammered. "Okay. Just, one thing." He looked at her, eyes narrowed and demanding she continue. "Um, what did you think of the song? I mean, I assume you heard some of it. Did it sound okay?"

Hiei's eyes widened ever so slight, but his irritated glare remained fixated on Botan. How could she even ask that? Of course the song sounded okay. Did she not know how amazing it had sounded? For it to have brought him back to a time he normally avoided, it was extraordinary. He wouldn't admit it. "Hn," he scoffed. "What does my opinion matter? It has nothing to do with me."

"Well, that's true," Botan timidly offered. Hiei nearly rolled his eyes at her normal shyness. Sure, Botan felt that way over the play and acting, but she had never acted that way with him. Hiei did not deal with shy people. "It's just…well, your opinion actually means something to me." That was not what Hiei was expecting to hear. "I just wanted to know if you thought there was anything I needed to work on, improve, or change. Like your show is important to you, my recital is important to me, and I really can't trust anyone else to be brutally honest with me except for you, so…"

"You don't need to change anything," Hiei interrupted her, silencing her. "It was decent."

Those words alone brought an unbridled grin to the woman's face. It took him by surprise, that pure joy that he had apparently caused by giving her his opinion like she asked. "Thank you," Botan replied. "That means I can transpose it later."

"Hm?"

Botan blushed and looked away, attempting to explain her process to Hiei. "Well, I need to submit sheet music to my advisor when the time comes."

"I thought Yukina said you needed to submit a CD," Hiei interjected, eyes narrowed again. "Why the sheet music?"

"It's just the process," Botan explained. "The CD is so that my advisor can hear how it sounds, but the sheet music needs to be reviewed. Anyway, it takes too much time to go between writing a song and writing sheet music. I rarely write any of my songs down. I usually just record them when I can or play from memory. So basically, I just play what I feel and record it. I can always write the sheet music later. It's much easier once a song is completed."

Hiei nodded, though he still believed it to be a lot of work. He understood, considering they needed to do that for their own collaboration. In fact, he saw Botan switch the tape in the recorder to the one they had been using during their sessions. "I didn't know if we were going to be writing much more today, but I figure just in case. Anyway, I know our biggest issue is choosing a song we can dance to. Have you had any luck envisioning the scene?"

"No," Hiei remarked. To be honest, he had been struggling. He had never felt what his parents had supposedly felt, and there weren't too many eighties songs he'd dance to with someone at a club. Sure, he needed to get into "Preston's" mindset, but that was difficult in it of itself. "You?"

"I'm afraid not," Botan admitted with a sigh. "I've never really been to a dance, not since middle school. After that, it just wasn't…something I was interested in." Her eyes shifted back to Hiei to find him staring at her before she blushed, awkwardly laughed, and waved him off. "But you didn't need to know that, after all. I just mean I don't have experience knowing what songs would make for good dance songs."

There was nothing Hiei could come up with either, so he figured he'd keep the dialogue going. Eventually, they'd have to come up with something. "Why didn't you go to your school dances?"

Botan hesitated. She had already given him the safe answer, but the truth would end up digging into her personal life. In her mind, she had already resolved to have a completely professional relationship with Hiei. He seemed the type to want to keep his personal matters and business matters separate, even if they crossed slightly due to the play's content. "Oh, you don't want to know about little old me," she dissuaded. "Besides, it really doesn't matter. What matters is getting everything up and running for your show. So, let's put on our thinking caps, shall we?"

Hiei was undeterred. He could tell she was avoiding the question, and he really didn't think it was a big deal. Besides, they were costars and collaborators. They were already spending a great deal of their time together, and it would only increase from there. Eventually, they'd need to run through the lines for their scenes in private, many times. Getting to know his costar was always on top of Hiei's list even if he couldn't stand them. It was important to generate some kind of attachment to the character the other played, and it was much easier when two people knew at least a little about the other.

"Contrary to what you think," Hiei stated, "getting to know each other is an important part of this. Haven't you thought about the future of the play? Right now, the music and the dancing is one thing, but eventually we're going to have to fully become the characters. It's a romance, Botan. There will be a lot of activity, many touches, and so we should at least learn a little about each other. I'm aware you aren't an actress, and so those scenes will be a bit difficult for you to stomach. It's better going into it when the other person is not a stranger."

Botan was surprised by Hiei's declaration. As he had observed, she had only been thinking of the beginnings and not the direction the play would be taking. She blushed the instant she thought of being embraced by him. Her heart started to race as she grimaced and stood up walking away from him and wrapping her arms around herself. She didn't notice the confused glance Hiei was shooting her way. "I actually hadn't thought about that," Botan murmured. "Sorry. I know all of that is important. Just…it never occurred to me at all. I already feel like I know a lot about you from just simply observing you, from what Yukina's said, and from this play. It's like you're baring your soul in your words, so I didn't want to pry much."

"I won't tell you anything I don't feel comfortable telling you," Hiei countered. "And I expect you to be aware that you have the same right. Some things are better left unsaid. We don't have to know each other's 'deepest, darkest secrets,' as one of my other costars put it before I put her in her place. I'm not giving you anything that can be used against me."

"I wouldn't use anything you told me against you," Botan stated sincerely earning hardened eyes. "Uh, I…just to make sure you understand. I'll be honest, I know you probably like keeping your thespian life separate from real life, but well, I kind of…sort of…oh never mind."

Hiei huffed, getting irritated with Botan's constant dodging. "What?" he grunted out, glaring at the blue-haired woman.

"I…" Botan tried again before taking a deep breath. "I want to be your friend."

This woman certainly had no qualms throwing Hiei for a loop. His enlarged, red eyes bore into hers, shock evident on his face before he sneered slightly. "Friend?" he questioned, his voice full of contempt. "You never cease to amaze me. What reason would you possibly have for wanting to befriend me?"

Botan's eyes filled with hurt, hearing the accusation. She frowned and felt like the smallest person in the world. "Well, I know what you're thinking, and it has nothing to do with the show or even your status," she tried to placate. "Hiei, none of that stuff matters to me. I'll admit I've heard of you, and I always had the utmost respect for you, but to me…you're not Hiei Jaganshi, the actor or playwright. You're just plain Hiei, my friend's brother and a fellow actor and songwriter. I'm not looking for anything in return. I just thought it would be nice to have another friend. I don't have very many of those."

Hiei's eyes searched hers and could tell she was being truthful. In all fairness, she really misunderstood why he was being so dismissive. Hiei had very few friends. His life on the streets were still ever engraved in his memories, and he wasn't willing to let any more people than he already had into his mind. The idea that some random, small town girl actually wanted to be more than colleagues, friends, left him feeling disgusted by the idea. "I'm not looking for a friend," he admitted. He saw her expression falter and the light in her eyes fade. Still, he needed to be perfectly clear. "Getting to know each other doesn't mean we will be friends. It will just help our chemistry and interactions will seem more natural. That's all. As I said, this is all strictly business."

"Oh," Botan replied, her voice low. "I see." He could tell that it wasn't what she wanted to hear. For a moment, he heard her voice crack and could see her form shaking. His brow raised slightly in uncertainty. She wasn't about to cry, was she? He remained quiet while she sniffed once and then looked up at him with a forced smile. "I guess you're right. You really are focused on this play, and even if you don't want to be friends, I can't still do whatever I can to support you in this endeavor. Maybe we can revisit that point when you're less stressed. For now…well, to answer your earlier question, I didn't go to many dances after middle school because the friends I usually went with…well, I had a falling out with both of them at one point, and to this day one still isn't thrilled with me. I didn't want to go because it would be awkward. Besides, I never had anyone to go with, anyway. I don't feel like I missed out on anything, though. I mean, I kind of wish I went to prom, but it's not like I would have had those moments others have. My sister wouldn't have helped me with that."

"What about your mother?" Hiei asked casually before Botan got unusually quiet.

It wasn't Hiei's fault that he accidentally pushed a couple of her buttons, but she was already overwhelmed, especially since Hiei said he wasn't interested in being her friend. That had brought back a few painful memories. "She couldn't. I…I need to go, I think. I've been in this room too long today. We can meet back here tomorrow around the same time. I'll try to figure out a song by then. Uh, you can text Yukina and let her know if you come up with one."

Before Hiei could respond or even ask Botan about her abrupt change in demeanor, she was already out the door. Her behavior was indeed strange, and it puzzled him. He could absolutely not figure this woman out, and that was something he was unused to. Usually his costars were like open books, all the same, but Botan was unlike all of them, the reason he had chosen her. Still, he didn't like her reaction. He was never deceitful. He made it clear from the beginning that this was a business arrangement. There was nothing that could have prepared him for the fact that the woman wanted to be friends, nor could it prepare him for the way she conducted herself when he asked about her mother.

As he listened to her reasoning, he thought it stupid that Botan would ostracize herself because of a couple of disgruntled classmates. There was simply no reason to feed into that kind of behavior. Hiei himself hadn't gone to school dances save the prom, and that was only because Yukina had been asked there by some guy. Yukina never went to any dances either, for she was always focused on studying and spending as much time with her older brother as possible, but she agreed to go with that guy, Touya he believed was his name. Hiei only went to protect his sister, but he had little interest. If Botan had wanted to go, she should have just gone. Sparrowfield girls certainly were strange.

He looked around the room and realized that Botan had forgotten her tape recorder and sighed. She'd be needing that. He'd text Yukina once he returned to his room letting her know he had it and to tell Botan he'd bring it the next day. At least his sister could act as the go-between for now.


Botan made it back to the apartment and went straight for her room. Thankfully, Yukina was already in for the night. Most likely, she had a paper to work on. Usually, by that time, the girl would already be working on dinner, and when she wasn't it was because she was engrossed. That was fine. Botan wasn't really in the mood to eat that night anyway.

Her sessions with Hiei usually made her feel better, but this one just left her feeling empty. She understood why Hiei was keeping his distance, but that didn't bother her. When she thought about Yusuke and Keiko, having lost one and almost lost both, she felt horrible. She didn't know what possessed her to bring up her desire to have gone to prom or even the fact that Shizuru wouldn't have gone with her anywhere to get ready. There was nothing magical about a school dance nor would there have been in getting ready. No offense to her sister, but Botan would only go through that sort of thing with her mother. Shizuru was not her mother.

"I really miss you, mama," Botan spoke to the air, tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry I'm such a screw up."

As if someone knew she was being down on herself, her phone rang and she sighed moving to answer it. "Hello?"

"Hey, Botan," Yusuke greeted. "I'm kind of bored, so I wanted to know if you wanted to do something tonight."

Botan looked around her room noting that her bed looked very welcoming at the moment. She just wanted to crawl under the covers and hide from the rest of the world. "I'm not really feeling up to anything, Yusuke."

"Are you okay?"

Damn her friend and his ability to see right through her. "I've just been busy all day and I'm exhausted. I was just going to go to bed."

"Botan…" Yusuke admonished. "It's four o'clock in the afternoon. If you go to bed now, you're going to be up all night. Seriously, what's wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong," Botan protested a little too much. "I just don't want to do anything."

"I could just drive us around for a bit," her friend suggested. "I mean, we still have some exploring to do. What do you say?"

Botan sighed in exasperation. She knew Yusuke wasn't going to let this go, so she nodded her head and said, "Fine. We can take my car. Want me to come pick you up?"

"Nah, I'll walk over," he told her. "Like I said, I'm bored. I could use the exercise."

"Yeah, yeah," Botan muttered jovially. "Alright, I'll see you in a bit."

"Later."

Botan hung up her phone and looked to the sky. "Well played," she stated not knowing if she was talking to her parents or God at the moment. Clearly, someone didn't want her sitting in her room wallowing for hours. Even if she was distressed, she could at least let Yusuke drive her around. Maybe it would make her feel better. Perhaps she'd even be able to figure out a song.


Yusuke showed up about a half hour later, and the two of them made their way to her car. Yusuke held his hand up so Botan could toss him the keys so they could get into the car. He pulled out of the parking lot, and the two of them began their journey together.

It was what Botan needed, senseless chatter as they pointed out new restaurants to try and new places to look into. They passed a bowling alley, a movie theater, a mall, an arcade, and even a drive-in. "Hey, it's been a while since we checked one of those out," Yusuke stated. "Wanna catch a movie?"

"Not tonight," Botan sighed as she rested her elbow on the window and held her head up.

Yusuke looked to his friend, concerned. "Okay, Botan, spill," he ordered. "What happened today that has you feeling so down?"

"Nothing," Botan lied. "Like I said, I'm just tired."

"Come on, Botan," Yusuke huffed. "I know you. This isn't just 'tired.' You're upset. Just let me help you."

"Yusuke, I'm fine," Botan argued, getting a little loud. "It's really nothing major. If it was, I'd tell you. You have no reason to worry over me."

Yusuke sighed and shook his head. "Botan, I always worry about you. You're my best friend and you know I love you. I just worry when you get closed off like this. Haven't I proven over the years that you can trust me?"

Botan didn't answer. Yusuke had proven himself to her and won back her trust, but there was still a lot she couldn't discuss with him. Plus, when it came to her parents, she felt she should be over it. It had been ten years and she needed to get over it. She could hardly remember her parents, though she remembered their love. If anything, she should be happy that she had good memories of them. Some people didn't even have that.

The silence was stifling, and Yusuke was about to plead his case again when his phone went off. "Damn it," he cursed when he heard the familiar ringtone. He took one of his hands from the wheel and pulled out his phone. "It's Keiko…"

"Don't worry," Botan assured him, her voice unusually steady and her eyes devoid of emotion. "It's fine. I'll be quiet."

Yusuke felt guilty when Botan said that and sighed. Not much could be done about this right now. He had to answer the call. "Hey, Keiko. What's up?"

"Yusuke, you'll never believe it!" the girl said in complete excitement. "I just found Marilyn got engaged to Bradley yesterday night. Can you believe it? They were the couple everyone expected to get together besides us."

"Uh-huh," Yusuke muttered, not really caring about their old classmates. "Well, that's good for them."

"I know," Keiko sighed. "Do you ever think that will be us?"

Yusuke nearly slammed on the breaks that moment having been completely stunned. "Keiko," he said in warning. "You know we probably will. I just didn't think we were thinking about that until we both finished school."

"Oh, of course," Keiko agreed. "I just wanted to know what you thought."

"I love you," Yusuke told her. "That's what I think. Other than that, I haven't thought of much." Yusuke looked over to Botan and frowned when he saw her eyes fixated on the dashboard. "Listen, Keiko. I need to go. I'm actually kind of driving right now, taking a look at the town."

"Yusuke!" Keiko shouted in a panic. "You know I worry when you answer while driving."

Yusuke snickered. "You worry when my phone goes to voicemail, too," he teased before sighing. "Look, Keiko, I'm fine. I'm not going anywhere. I'll text you when I get back to my dorm later."

"Alright, Yusuke," Keiko said softly. "I love you." Botan could genuinely believe that from the sound of her voice. "Drive safely, please."

"I will. Love you too."

With that, Yusuke grabbed his phone and ended the call. "Sorry about that," he offered Botan. "I figured she wouldn't call. We already talked earlier."

"It's fine," Botan stated curtly.

Yusuke almost glared at her. "Botan, it's clearly not fine. You look pissed. What the hell did I do now?"

"Nothing!" Botan argued. "You didn't do anything, Yusuke. It's fine. I'm fine. Just drop it."

"Son of a…" Yusuke muttered under his breath. "Damn it, Botan. You're making me mad. Just tell me what the hell I did that pissed you off. Whatever I did, I'm sorry. Is it because Keiko called?"

"No, Yusuke," Botan scoffed. "You seriously don't know me if you think that bothered me."

"Then what the fuck did?"

Botan glared at Yusuke looking angrier than he had seen her in a while. "How about the fact that Keiko still hates me? What about the fact that she calls you multiple times a day and panics when she doesn't hear from you because she doesn't trust that you won't leave her because of me? Or, here's my favorite…the fact that I can never see my best friend get married because his future wife hates my guts? Just, drop it, okay? I don't want to talk about it."

"Botan," Yusuke breathed out. "Keiko doesn't hate you." Botan made a disbelieving noise. "Okay, maybe she does, but that doesn't matter. As for her trust issues, those are her problem. I can deal with it. They're my fault, not yours, so get that through your head. As for me getting married, you honestly think I wouldn't invite you to my wedding. You're my best friend, damn it. The only friend I've got besides Keiko. You'd be my best woman."

"I wouldn't," Botan retorted making Yusuke falter. "I'm not getting between you and Keiko again. It will be her wedding day, and I'm not going to ruin it by being there. Yusuke, just drop me off. I'll walk back to the apartment. Just leave the car and give Yukina the keys."

"Damn it, Botan, no!" Yusuke snapped before rubbing the back of his head aggressively. "That's not how this works. You're upset. I'm not just abandoning you here. Let's go find a nice park. We always loved those. We can just sit and talk, okay?"

"There's nothing to talk about, Yusuke," Botan said quieter this time as tears pricked the corner of her eyes.

"Could've fooled me," Yusuke retorted before sighing. "Please, Botan, for me? I can't forgive myself when you're this worked up."

Botan snickered slightly. "I know," she murmured. "You're too much of a softy. Just, Yusuke, I really don't want to talk about anything."

"Fine, we won't talk then," Yusuke pled. "Just, come sit with me in the park. Sometimes silence is the best medicine, right?"

"Yeah," Botan mustered, her voice weak and quiet. "Alright, let's go find a park."

Yusuke mentally sighed in relief. He really hadn't expected Botan to get so upset nor did he expect her to get worked up about his and Keiko's future wedding. That was so far into the future that Yusuke wasn't even worried. He always assumed that either Keiko would get over it by then or he'd just tell her that Botan and his mother were the only ones he wanted there and she'd have to deal with it. Eventually, Keiko was going to have to grow up and trust him. She knew he loved her, and he knew she loved him. He never worried about her going to anyone else. He just wished she'd give him the same courtesy.

His eyes wandered to his saddened friend who was once again staring out the window. He really wished Keiko would cut Botan some slack, too. He had tried to explain to his girlfriend multiple times that Botan had had nothing to do with anything, but Keiko never listened once Botan's name got brought up. Someday, she'd have to listen.

Yusuke wasn't going to abandon Botan. As he said, she was his best friend and he cared so much about her. He had a very small circle. The only people who ever gave a damn about him were her, her brother, his mother, and Keiko. Now, Kuwabara wasn't his biggest fan and their friendship was nonexistent. The older male made that clear ever since they became roommates. Keiko was his distrustful girlfriend, and his mother spent most nights wasting herself. Botan was the only one who was truly there to help him talk through all that crap.

Botan had it worse. She had him, Kuwabara, and her little sister, Hinageshi. Now, she at least had Yukina which made Yusuke feel better. And Kurama seemed to like Botan. There was also Hiei. Speaking of…

"Oh, I almost forgot," Yusuke stated reaching into his bag in the backseat.

"Yusuke!" Botan shouted, grabbing the wheel from the passenger's seat as Yusuke snickered and handed her the tape recorder.

"Sorry, but I would have forgotten again," he explained, thinking that was an okay answer. "You left this behind at the chorus room. Hiei brought it back with him and told me to give it to you when I said I was going to see you. Why didn't you tell us you were helping him with his show? That's pretty amazing, though I didn't peg you for an actor."

"It never came up," Botan offered, placing a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "It's not that big a deal."

"Sounds like a pretty big deal to me," Yusuke said sincerely, frowning at how withdrawn Botan was acting. "Botan, I'm being serious. Is there something bothering you? You usually tell me this stuff, and you never act so…darty."

"Darty?" Botan questioned. "Is that an actual world?"

"I don't know…flighty, then," Yusuke corrected. "Avoiding your issues. You always tell me not to do that. Why are you?"

"Yusuke," Botan murmured. "I'm not avoiding anything. I just don't want to talk about it. It's just the same old stuff, one of those days. I'll be fine. If I weren't, I would tell you, okay?"

Yusuke finally surrendered, sighing. "Well, alright, then. I'm holding you to that. Now, let's go find that park. Hey, why not turn on the radio? We should get some tunes in here."

"Sure," Botan agreed, moving to tap the power. It was left on a classical station, one that Yusuke said would make him pass out at the wheel from sheer boredom, so she quickly flipped to one of their favorite, pre-programmed channels, an eighties rock station.

"And that was 'Rock You Like A Hurricane' by the Scorpions," a masculine voice announced. "Next up is an old favorite from The Hooters, 'And We Danced.' Let's get rolling!"

Immediately, the music started, the harmonica and ukulele making way for the guitars, drums, and piano before the first lyrics rang out, "She was a be-bop baby on a hard day's night. She was hangin' on Johnny. He was holdin' on tight. I could feel her coming from a mile away. There was no use talking, there was nothing to say when the band began to play and play.

"And we danced like a wave on the ocean, romanced. We were liars in love and we danced. Swept away for a moment by chance. And we danced and danced, danced."

Botan froze when she heard the song. It was one she knew well, one that both of her parents had loved. She had long pushed it to the back of her mind because it reminded her of both of them. That was hard after they passed away. It was the song they danced to on their first date. They had known each other, but hadn't gotten together until they were out of college.

It didn't surprise Botan that the song hadn't come to her right away, but now that she was hearing it, her mouth dropped open. It was the perfect song for the play, no matter how painful it might be for her. It was catchy. It was lively. It was perfect. She had actually found it.

Yusuke was humming to it, tapping on the wheel before he remembered why Botan didn't like the song. He gasped and reached to shut it off. "I'm so sorry, Botan. I-"

"No!" Botan stopped him, surprising him. She smiled at his perplexed face. "Let it play. I need to hear this."


Hiei tossed his bag on an empty chair in the chorus room incredibly pissed off. Last night had been a nightmare. He had returned to his dorm to find Yusuke trying to engage Kuwabara to play a videogame, but the redhead would not have it sort of upsetting the dark-haired teenager. Eventually, Yusuke gave up, getting bored with his game and called Botan asking the woman to hang out. Of course, the jealous redhead scolded him saying he couldn't use Botan for his own personal amusement. Yusuke had argued that it wasn't like that and that he and Botan were friends. Besides, he had appealed to Kuwabara first. Kuwabara merely rolled his eyes and said he'd hunt them down if Yusuke didn't get back at a decent time to which the younger male simply laughed and got ready to run.

Hiei had given him the tape recorder to give the woman since he had yet to hear from his sister on whether or not Botan knew. Yusuke had been stunned that Hiei had it, and then Kuwabara demanded to know when Hiei had even seen Botan. Hiei was getting irritated by the older male's constant insinuations. If he liked the girl, he should just tell her and then let that be the end of it. To prevent an argument from ensuing after Hiei remained silent, Kurama spoke up which pissed the thespian off. He didn't want to reward Kuwabara's immature behavior.

Kurama was the one to explain that Botan was Hiei's costar in his play and that she was helping him to come up with the music for the play. Both Yusuke and Kuwabara had been surprised, but Yusuke thought it was the greatest thing. He promised to return Botan's recorder to her knowing she would flip out when she went to get it and found it missing. Hiei was still getting dirty looks from Kuwabara as of this morning. It was absolutely infuriating.

So was the fact that Botan was late.

So far, in their partnership, Botan had never been late once, so he figured he could let it slide. Eventually, Botan ran into the room completely out of breath huffing and puffing as she nearly fell over. Hiei looked at her with a deadpanned expression. "S-Sorry I'm late," she apologized. "B-But I found it."

"Found what?" Hiei dared to ask.

Botan then took out her phone and played a video. Hiei's eyes widened when he heard it. "I found the song. Isn't it great?"

"I met my be-bop baby at the Union Hall. She could dance all night and shake the paint off the walls. But when I saw her smile across a crowded room…well I knew we'd have to leave the party soon as the band began to play out of tune."

Hiei knew this song! He couldn't remember where he heard it, but it really was the kind of song he'd been searching for. The scene after Preston would see Hope, he would struggle to get across the dancefloor to the woman, eventually being inches away as a new song began, asking her to dance. The other couples would fade into the background as the spotlight would land on the two of them gliding around the dancefloor. The two would be lost in each other's eyes, not registering anyone else in the room. It would just be them, and that song was the perfect song to highlight that.

Botan was shocked when Hiei came over to her, grabbing her hand and hip. She yelped, surprised by his touch, and looked at him questioningly. He only smirked at her. "Let's rehearse a little before the rehearsal later."

"Now?" Botan asked, flabbergasted.

Hiei chuckled. "Yes, now," he responded smoothly. "Get used to it, Botan. We're the leads. We'll be spending a lot of time together outside of rehearsal running through lines and practicing these dances. Let's try this one, now."

"O-Okay," Botan nervously stammered, letting Hiei glide her around the room, the chorus of the song playing once again.


"And we danced like a wave on the ocean, romanced. We were liars in love and we danced. Swept away for a moment by chance. And we danced and danced, danced."

Kurama was impressed, as were most of the other students, as they watched the first rehearsal of the scene where Preston met Hope. Both Botan and Hiei were smiling looking like they only had eyes for each other. The redhead knew they were acting, but there was something there. He had seen the chemistry when Hiei forced Botan to audition, but this was completely different. Hiei actually looked like he was having fun. Even in his past roles, Hiei never looked like he was having this much fun.

"The endless beat she's walking my way. Hear the music fade when she says, 'Are we getting too close, do we dare to get closer?' The room is spinning as she whispers my name.

"And we danced like a wave on the ocean, romanced. We were liars in love and we danced. Swept away for a moment by chance. And we danced and danced, danced, danced."

The two froze in place, Hiei dipping Botan before slowly returning her to the proper footing, the two breathing heavily as they smiled. "Amazing," 'Hope' breathed out, still trying to catch her breath.

'Preston' smirked arrogantly at the woman before leading her safely off the dancefloor. "Thank you," he remarked. "You were pretty impressive yourself, though you look like you're about to drop, miss."

Preston waved down the waiter, the man bringing them a couple glasses of water and setting them on the table. "Hope," Botan stated, keeping the script beside her.

"Pardon?" Hiei replied right on cue.

Botan merely smiled. "My name is Hope. And you are…?"

"Preston," he replied. "Hope. Such a beautiful name."

"My father, he named me," Hope explained, smiling sadly.

"Are you all right?" Preston asked, feeling concern for the woman he had just met.

Botan nodded, looking down at the script following the words with her finger. "I am. It's just…my father passed away not too long ago."

Preston was instantly sympathetic, taking the woman's hand and squeezing it. Botan had read the line, feeling overwhelmed seeing as she lost her own father. She could definitely relate to Hope, or rather Hiei's mother. She had felt so emotionally overwhelmed that when Hiei grabbed her hand, she jumped, startled and looked to him questioningly. Hiei's eyes were soft, and for the moment she couldn't tell if he was acting or truly concerned about her. Did he think she had been acting? "I'm truly sorry," he offered the woman.

Botan shook her head, as per the script. "No, don't be," she argued. "It's no one's fault. It's just…it's been tough. My mother hasn't been the same since he passed. To be honest, she's been focusing more on my future, and it's been suffocating."

"Tch," Preston scoffed pulling away from Hope. "I can relate. Not to the death, but controlling parents. For you, I'm sure it's just a phase." Hope looked upset when he said that. "Or…isn't it…"

"No," Hope refuted. "My mother has always been controlling, but my father always acted as the mediator. With him gone…well…would you listen to me…" Hope forced a laugh, wiping away tears, which Hiei was surprised were real. Botan was actually crying… "My friends would be smacking me upside the head right now for talking about it," she continued with her lines. "This was the first night they were able to get me out of the house."

Preston's expression softened. "It's fine," he assured her. "You can't hide this stuff. It's not as simple as all that. If you need to talk, go ahead. I won't stop you."

Hope smiled and nodded. "Thank you for understanding," she said quietly. "So, what about you?"

"What about me?"

Hope giggled. "What's your story, silly? You just said you understand controlling parents, so…"

"I'd rather not discuss it," Preston growled, looking away before clutching his glass of water hard.

"But…maybe it will help," Hope countered, frowning. "You just look…very intense. You let me speak of my father and mother. I promise I won't tell anyone."

"That's not what I'm worried about," Preston murmured before sighing. "Fine. Jeice would be telling me to hook a woman, so I guess I could start with this." Hope didn't seem too bothered by his remarked, causing him to chuckle before he glared at the candle between them. "My father is the president of a major corporation, and as per an agreement with one of his business partners, I was supposed to marry his daughter." Hope's smile instantly fell. "Don't worry…I'm not cheating. We're no longer together."

"I'm sorry," Hope offered. "What happened?"

Preston scoffed before holding the glass and resting it on the palm of his hand as he leaned back in the chair. "You mean what happened before or after I found out she was cheating on me?"

Hope gasped, her hand covering her mouth, her eyes saddening. "That's horrible! Are you okay?"

"Fine," Preston remarked, sitting up. "Our break up was a long time coming. I didn't love her. The cheating just pushed me over the edge. Marrying her would have been the ultimate humiliation. My parents aren't thrilled that I ended our engagement."

"But…don't they know-"

"Yup."

"But they don't…"

"No."

"But…but that's not fair!" Hope exclaimed.

Preston shrugged. "That's my parents for you. But I'm not their lapdog. I don't answer to them. I may work for my father, but he can't write my life for me."

Hope grinned, her eyes shining with belief in Preston. "You're a very strong man," she stated. "For that, you should be proud." Hope then hugged herself. "I only wish I could stand up to my mother the way you do your father."

"Who's to say you can't?" Preston questioned. At Hope's disbelieving look, he said, "No, seriously. What can she do to you? Tell me, what is your dream?"

"Oh, seriously?" Hope teased making Preston smirk. "Well, seriously, I want to study music. My mother never supported it, but my father paid for me to have piano lessons ever since I was a little girl. He always encouraged me. But, I can't afford to go into music. My mother is holding my college fund ransom unless I attend business school. I can't be like her or my father. I mean, she isn't a businesswoman, but she could be if she wanted to be."

"You can do anything you put your mind to," Preston told her. "I'm sure you'll find a way. You seem like a smart, devious woman."

Hope laughed, covering her mouth and looking so jovial. "You don't even know me, Preston," she returned. "You might think that, but I'm actually…uh…well…"

As she grew nervous and blushed, Preston knew what she was getting to and grinned. This woman was just too endearing, not to mention she was drop dead gorgeous. "Yo, Preston! We gotta go!"

Preston froze and then sneered, glancing off to his side. He wasn't ready to leave the woman, yet. He released a heavy sigh, though, realizing his father was going to be pissed when he returned home. He wasn't ready for that, yet. His eyes landed on Hope's concerned orbs. "Can I see you again?"

Hope seemed surprised by the abrupt question, but she got over her shock, smiled, and nodded. "I would like that."

Preston took out a phone and allowed Hope to program her number, although, of course, back in the day they didn't have phones like the ones that were out now, and his mother had given his father her number on the napkin he handed to her. When Botan finished the action, handing the phone back, cradling it in her two hands, Hiei covered her hands with his and stared into her eyes intensely, taking her breath away. "It was incredibly nice to meet you. I'll be in touch, Hope."

The woman smiled and released the phone. "I'll be waiting. Take care, Preston."

Preston stood up, disappearing into the crowd leaving Hope, Botan, all alone at the table as the couples began to leave the stage. Botan instantly felt her heart race, not having expected to be the last on stage. She looked to her last line of the scene, and sighed as it said for an action. "Happy Birthday to me…"

"Cut."

Botan snapped up, seeing Hiei on the ground below her with his arms crossed, observing her before he nodded. "Excellent work," he said, looking at the stage floor. "I think we've covered enough today."

Relieved, Botan got up from the chair and sat down to slip off the stage, her eyes and smile meeting Hiei's calculating expression. "Everyone may leave," Hiei stated. "Except you."

"Me?" Botan asked. "Did I do something wrong?"

"Yeah!" Koto called out before Hiei could respond. "You've been reading out of the script nonstop. What's your problem?"

Hiei looked over to Kurama angrily. "What the hell is she doing here?" he demanded.

"Well," Kurama offered, sweat-dropping, "she is the understudy."

Hiei growled before he left Botan for the moment walking directly up to the brunette. "It's the beginning of rehearsals, so Botan is permitted to use a script. It doesn't matter how people learn their roles as long as they learn. You are not to insert your two cents again, are we clear?" Koto was about to argue. "You're an understudy. Your opinion matters less than an ant's with me. If I have a problem with my costar, I will address it, but as it stands I do not. You…you're on thin ice with me, woman. Don't cross me."

With that, Hiei returned to Botan leaving a fuming mad Koto to screech and storm out of the auditorium. Other performers looked to one another and then started to head out not wanting to be around Hiei Jaganshi while he was angry. Kurama grinned, leaving his station. He saw the concern in Hiei's eyes the moment he looked at Botan even when he looked completely neutral. He could tell something happened on the stage during that scene, but even he couldn't put his finger on it. It was best to let Hiei deal with her on his own.

Once Hiei and Botan were alone, she fidgeted nervously under his gaze. Hiei's eyes softened only slightly, his lips parting to ask his question. "I'm sorry," Botan interjected. "I'll get better with using the script."

"Botan, that's not what I have to discuss with you," Hiei assured. "You did fine today, better than I had expected. That first scene went almost perfectly. You'll learn your lines with time."

"Okay, then…" Botan replied, only a tiny bit less nervous. "Then…what did I do?"

"Why were you crying?"

Botan was caught off-guard and looked like a deer caught in the headlights. "I-I-I…" she stammered. "It's…I…it was part of the script!" she exclaimed trying to explain away what happened. "Hope wipes a tear from her eye."

"Botan, you aren't an actress, as you remind me from time to time," Hiei stated. "I highly doubt you can cry on cue. Tell me why you were crying."

"Hiei…" Botan chided. "It's nothing. Please, just…"

Botan began to turn away, but Hiei stopped her, grabbing her wrist lightly effectively stopping her. "This is important, Botan," he told her. "You're my costar. I need to know what's going to upset you. I need to know if something I did caused you to react that way while we were rehearsing or if there was something else going on in your day that affected you so much."

"It wasn't anything from today nor was it anything you did," Botan sighed before she shook her head. "Hiei, please…I can't. It's too hard…"

"Botan," Hiei grunted irritably. "Come on…let's sit."

"No," Botan argued, angering her costar further. "H-Hiei…listen. This is something big, and it shouldn't affect me or you during this. It's something I need to deal with. I don't want to put it on you when you've got so much on your plate. I know we aren't friends, so you really don't need to worry about it. I'm fine, really."

Hiei released a heavy sigh and realized that he words from the other day were still being carried by the woman. "Just. Sit. Down." He ordered as he sat, Botan following suit. "I may have been a bit hasty in what I said," he explained. "I am not one to make friends. I've never had many real ones, only Kurama. It's hard, given my past, to trust anyone let alone want someone to trust me. It's not something I'm used to, and therefore I have no desire to make a friend. That doesn't mean I hate you or that you need to keep shit bottled up. As you saw in that scene…even Preston wouldn't let Hope keep everything hidden just because he was a stranger, so just talk to me. Whatever it is, I will try to accommodate you. That is what we need to do as costars. We're partners, Botan."

"You're…using my name a lot today," Botan pointed out. "Are you really that worried?"

Hiei didn't answer, but his eyes said it all, and Botan realized that he really had been concerned on stage when he saw her crying. She took in a deep breath and then released it. "Okay…" she whispered. "This is hard for me, Hiei. It's just…Hope's…I mean, your mother's father passed away, and he was the one who supported her." Hiei nodded for her to continue when she paused. She inhaled deeply once more and then exhaled. "My…my parents died when I was ten." Hiei looked completely stunned. "My…older sister became our legal guardian, and my older brother helps out as an authority figure. I have three other sisters, one who was a baby when they died.

"My older brother is probably the only one other than Yusuke who supports me," she continued, her hand covering her mouth as she started crying. "My parents always supported me, too, and loved me. My older sister, too, until this all happened. My youngest sister is good with me, but my two other sisters tear me down any chance they get, and Shizuru doesn't interfere much anymore because she's just given up on them, on all of us. She's been so different ever since she broke up with her last boyfriend. My brother had been here at school and had to return home to keep us all stable. It was a nightmare.

"Anyway," she said, sitting back in the chair and pushing her hair out of the way, "I didn't mean to go so far off on a tangent, but the whole thing just reminded me of myself and I empathized too deeply with your mother and her character. I'm sorry if I worried you or ruined the scene."

"You didn't ruin the scene," Hiei corrected, his hand clamping onto her shoulder startling Botan. His red orbs bore into her amethyst. "I'm sorry you've gone through all of that. I can relate."

Botan's expression became grim. "I know. To be honest, Yukina told me. For what it's worth, you were wronged. I can understand why you don't trust others, and I'm sorry for that. All I can say is that you've done amazingly for yourself despite the odds you were given. I'm...proud, to be your friend."

Hiei didn't correct her that time feeling a warm tingling in his chest. He hadn't felt anything like that since he was a child and his mother praised him for his one-hundred and five percent on a spelling test. It was strange that Botan, a girl he was only just starting to get to know, could illicit the same reaction.

"We should head out," Botan suggested. "It's been a day, and I'm exhausted. Hey, I know. Would you like to come back to the apartment with me for dinner? Yukina and I were going to order sushi. I think she told me you like sushi, too."

"I do," Hiei confirmed. He looked over at the clock hanging in the auditorium and shrugged. "Sure, why not? I have nothing else to do today."

Botan's expression brightened, and Hiei could tell that his acceptance of her invitation made her happy. It was strange how quickly her mood could shift. It almost reminded him of his mother, though his mother was much more controlled than Botan seemed to be. Of course, Botan did somewhat act the way his mother had always described herself before she had the two children alone. To be honest, he hoped Botan stayed that way. No one else deserved the same fate as his mother.

"You all right?"

Hiei's eyes met Botan's concerned ones as he nodded to reassure her. "Just thinking about the scene," he lied casually. "You did some nice work."

That also made Botan grin, and Hiei could have sworn that, in that moment, he felt his heart skip a beat.