~*Honmei-Choco*~
DeityofRoses
Standard Disclaimers Apply. I do own the girls who are in the first segment of the fic.
Botan sat there in the large cafe with a random book covering her quaint face. She was all silent, listening attentively to a group of girls who were giggling madly about Valentine's Day. She was altogether interested about her new discovery on chocolate. In her mind, chocolate was just plain chocolate given to your close friends on Valentine's Day. But, when she overheard a brunette talking about two types of chocolates, her interest immediately sparked up. So, when she had nothing better to do, she decided to get more info on the new words in her head by the way of eavesdropping.
"Kasumi-chan," A raven haired girl chided, "do you really believe you have a chance with Minamino-san?"
Botan grinned from ear to ear. She always loved hearing Kurama related stories.
"It's worth a try!" the brunette protested.
"But, you do know the fact that when every girl asked him out, he turns them down. It's pretty senseless to me to give him Honmei-Choco, now," she reasoned out. Her friend pouted and the other girls nodded disdainfully.
"Come on, at least keep the optimism!" A blonde haired girl, Kira, chirped.
"How can you keep the optimism when almost every girl in school will give him Honmei-Choco!?" exclaimed Akane, the raven haired teen. The others yet again nodded despondently. Kasumi and Kira bowed their heads down and gave out a dejected sigh.
"It's so obvious…" they muttered simultaneously.
Botan's eyebrow quirked up in question when she heard this. She dropped all the subjects on Honmei-Choco and Giri-Choco to think about this for a while.
Why would Kurama turn down a bunch of fine girls? Maybe… it might be all because of your Youko side… The dangerous notorious thief of Makai… Then again… it could be anything else… Botan scrunched up her nose in complete interest. She never really had the time to get to know Kurama that well, but when she heard about the little facts about his life, it made her grow more curious to discover more about him. She sighed deeply and continued to eavesdrop on their conversation. Her interest was more aimed at the direction of Giri-Choco and Honmei-Choco, anyway.
"… But… we could at least try…" Kira muttered.
Akane's eyebrows furrowed. "WE… no, I have a boyfriend. I finally realized I have no chance and dropped him, which was a good thing in my life. So, I'll be giving him my Honmei-Choco."
"You're so negative…" Juri announced in a matter of fact tone. Everyone agreed and you could see anger flaring up in their eyes.
Botan could only laugh softly. That was a bad move, though. Everything grew silent from the group of girls as they listened to Botan giggle.
"Oi!" Akane called.
Botan blinked and buried her head deeper into the book. "Y-yes?" her voice cracked nervously.
"What are you laughing about?! I hope you weren't just EAVESDROPPING on us!" she snarled.
She gently closed the book and laid it on the table. Her smile immediately turned sheepish. "No, no, I wasn't eavesdropping… my ears can't help but hear you know…"
Their faces grew blunt.
"… but, that meant you were eavesdropping on us!" Kira pointed out.
"No, no, no! I said I can't help but hear... it seems my ears won't turn off." Botan stammered. She still smiles embarrassingly while scratching the back of her head. The group gazed at her with suspiciously. Everything was silent. Botan continued to sit there, her face flushed with guiltiness.
"… I saw you walking with Minamino-san and a few of his friends before… did you?" Juri queried.
"Ah… yeah, I know Kur-Shuuichi-kun…" Botan answered a little curious on why they asked. All of a sudden the room filled with giggling and loud squeals. Before Botan could even blink, the girls were sitting right next to her asking various questions on his behavior and some very personal questions. She was immediately thrown into a world of puzzlement.
But, then one question hit her… "If you hang around with Minamino-san a lot, why didn't you ever try to date him?"
Botan's face grew a deep crimson color as that particular question rotated around her head. "H-Huh?" she mouthed out.
"Are you immune to his charms or something?" Akane dug deeper into the subject.
"No… I mean…"
"I'm pretty sure by now that every girl our age would have swooned over him."
"B-but…" Botan's face grew even redder than ever. The girls chortled even more when seeing this reaction.
Akane's fist pounded the table and directly flew over to Botan's face with her index finger out. "Aha!" she cried out, "We have a clue everyone! Minamino-san has been reserving himself for this girl!"
Everyone gasped and they grew silent. Botan's face burning madly as she stared wide-eyed at the girl.
"R-Really?" Botan choked out.
"You're practically the only girl he hangs out with!" Kira pointed out. "I know because I saw you and three other boys waiting for Minamino-san days ago!"
"That doesn't mean he likes me! Besides, there are other girls who he hangs out with too."
"Name them…"
Botan felt pressured. She took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. "Well… there is…… Keiko…"
"Yukimura-san… I know her… but she is Urameshi's girlfriend." Juri stated.
She sunk back into her seat. "Er… Yukina!"
"We don't even know a single thing about who she is!" The girls cried. Botan laughed sheepishly. Besides, Yukina was "going out" with Kuwabara already. If he found out Botan used Yukina as an example to get her out of a tight spot, he'd really blow right in front of her, especially when it was "his" girl.
"…ah… Shizuru?"
"You mean the ugly one's sister?" Akane smirked. Botan nodded.
The girls sat there silently. Shizuru was a possibility… but would Kurama really go out with her? She does smoke after all. "I would really think he would go out with her, doesn't she smoke?" Kira questioned. Botan nodded again.
"So? Who else?" Akane coaxed.
"…Minamino Shiori!" Botan clasped her hands together. The groups head dropped at her observation and everyone was laughing awkwardly.
"That's his mother! She doesn't count because we all hang out with our mother everyday!" Juri cried out. Botan laughed and lowered her head to the table. Her forehead was resting against the hardwood.
"…I told you… Minamino-san is reserving himself for you…" Akane slyly said.
Botan's face couldn't go on getting red anymore since she already has reached her limit.
An impish smirk crossed Akane's lips. "My, my, I guess she really does like Minamino-san."
Envious eyes glared at Botan's crimson face. "It's not what you think…"
"Why else are you blushing? You've been keeping a secret right!?"
"That isn't it. We're just good friends that's all! FRIENDS!" she emphasized on the word. …But, I want to be more than friends… She gasped and shook the thought away vigorously.
"Reaction! Reaction!" The girls chanted. Botan sunk farther into her seat.
"This is so fun! It's better to play matchmaker than actually get together with him!" Kira cried out delightedly.
"That's not it!" Botan yelled embarrassingly.
"Denying one's love isn't very good, girl! What will Minamino-san think!?"
"I am not dating him!"
"But, you will…"
Botan groaned inwardly. Dating Kurama? That thought never hit her before… but now when she thought about it… it was actually… "No!" she yelled.
The girls silenced.
Botan smiled sheepishly.
Their smiles returned.
"So… what is Minamino-san like when you hang out?"
Botan shrugged. It wouldn't hurt to talk about him once and a while. "Well…"
Minutes passed as Botan continued to talk about the red haired bishounen. But, when she thought about what she was going to say… she immediately felt that she had no clue what Kurama was about. He was a complete mystery to her. He was her friend… but he seemed so anonymous. The only things she could talk about was how he acted, looked, and what they did together. Sometimes she slipped a few hints about their missions, but she let that go. None of these girls would take insinuation about it anyway.
"So, will you give him Honmei-Choco?" Kasumi asked starry eyed.
"Honmei-Choco?" Botan inquired. She forgot. The main reason why she was eavesdropping on them was because she was curious what Honmei-Choco and Giri-Choco is. "What's that?"
The girls groaned.
"Honmei-Choco…that's when you give chocolate to your lover… then Giri-Choco would be when you give chocolate to your friends. There's no difference about the chocolate though… it just depends on what you think of it and who you hand it to." Kasumi answered with a glint of romance in her eyes. Botan thought about what she said for a while.
"… well, I guess I would give him… Giri-Choco." She thoughtfully replied.
"Giri-Choco!?" They exclaimed.
Botan shrunk back, a bit nervous and surprised. "WH-what!?"
"Have you heard a single thing we have said!?" Kasumi cried out.
"Yeah! Honmei-Choco for lovers and Giri-Choco for friends…right!?"
"Exactly!" Juri exasperatedly replied.
"Yeah! Shuuichi-kun and I are friends!"
They groaned again. It seemed as if nothing was getting through her head. They decided to take this one step at a time. "But, you said… Minamino-san and you are dating." Juri pointed out. The girls nodded and suddenly their eyes seemed to pop out. They gaped at the man behind Botan.
"What?" Botan questioned nervously.
The boy coughed and Botan immediately jerked her head to the person behind. Her eyes bugged out when she saw the most unlikely person to meet.
Kurama.
Her face burned out of embarrassment. "Kur-Shuuichi-kun!" she cried out and jumped out of her seat.
Kurama examined the group of blushing girls and then turned to face Botan. "Yusuke said he couldn't come get you, so I volunteered to do it," he said, his eyes watching Botan's red face intently. Her body sagged when she thought about the possibility of him overhearing their "Shuuichi conversation". She only nodded. He turned his head over to the girls and smiled gratefully. "Thank-you for keeping Botan-san company," he thanked. Kurama could hear the light giggles and wistful sighs. "Have a good day," he added just before exiting.
"…I'm still giving him my Honmei-Choco," Kira affirmed.
"… Yeah, me too," Juri sighed.
Akane narrowed her eyes. "After meeting his girlfriend?!"
"Well… she did admit that they were ONLY friends."
She rolled her eyes at the blushing girls who were daydreaming about Kurama at the moment. "Okay, sure, deny that now…" she spat out.
~*~
Botan ambled slowly behind Kurama, her face still having that crimson tinge to it. "Ah… Shuuichi-kun?" she murmured, knowing that they were still in public area.
Kurama peered back at her and she immediately jerked her head sideways. He looked at her quizzically. "Yeah?"
"I… Where's Yusuke?"
"Oh," he sighed. A fond smile placed over his lips. "Keiko and Yusuke got into a fight today. It was indeed humourous… they were fighting over what to do for Valentine's Day. She planned on going on a romantic picnic, yet Yusuke disliked every aspect of it and refused…" He laughed softly.
Botan smiled. "Well, Yusuke isn't known to be the romantic type, right?"
"Yes, always denying his feelings for Keiko-san even though they already know they love each other…"
"It's really pointless!"
"I agree." He replied. His emerald eyes scanned her face which was still facing away from him. He noticed the deep shade of crimson has just gone even redder and chuckled.
He's reserving himself for you…
Botan's heart stopped. She slowly turned her face forward to see that Kurama wasn't staring at her anymore. Relief struck her and she exhaled deeply.
You're practically the only girl he hangs out with!
Suddenly she passed a couple who was sitting there having a romantic date. She blushed madly when the thought of her and Kurama replacing them. She then felt herself bump into a solid, soft object and her vision was covered with red bangs. Botan glanced up to see Kurama gazing at her with those empathetic green eyes. "…You've been acting weird ever since I came to get you…" he murmured.
She felt herself moving back a bit. "Oh… really? How so!?" she stammered. A crimson hue was ruling over her quaint face.
Kurama smiled. "Are you sick?"
"N-no! I'm fine…" she mumbled. He must have clearly seen the red tinge on her face… well, who couldn't? It was covering her face with 3 different shades of red.
"You're red all over."
"Stop teasing me! I know what you're thinking!" Botan deadpanned. She grabbed his arm and started pulling him forward. He remained calm, but he couldn't help but laugh.
"You shouldn't believe those girls; they just like to play a lot." He contemplated.
"…Oh, really…" she muttered. Botan closed her eyes thinking how foolish she was. But, deep down… she felt a pang of pain strike at her heart. "Yeah… I shouldn't believe them…" she murmured and gripped his arm tighter. They continued walking for a while in silence. Kurama's eyes were examining Botan's tight grasp on him while she was thoughtfully looking at the ground, her face becoming less red than before.
"…Will you grow up to be alone?" she softly said. Her head lifted up to see Kurama's shocked eyes.
"Why do you ask that?"
"… I don't want you to be on your own, Shuuichi-kun…"
Now it was Kurama's turn to blush. "Why not?"
"It doesn't fit you…" she sighed.
"I still have… okaa-san…"
Her amethyst eyes became concerned as she dared to question him with a personal inquiry. "But… what about when she………goes?"
Kurama's eyes darkened. His face grew a little pale. "…Well… I know that will soon happen… and…"
"… I'm sorry…"
"…"
Botan lowered her head, she was loathing at how disrespectful she appeared to be. It was such a delicate subject to Kurama and she regretted it for a while. They walked in silence still.
"Botan-san?" Kurama finally spoke up.
"Yes?"
"…I guess… I'd have to move on and live life to the fullest even though she is gone… I mean… humans can't live forever and I can't depend on her all my life…"
Botan nodded slowly. "But, you love her very much, right?"
"Yes, very much… but now that you mentioned it… I would have to let her go some time…"
"... Even though you have to let her go here… you don't have to let her go in your heart, right?"
"Of course… I won't ever let her go in my heart… okaa-san means so much to me… she helped me be what I am today even as a kitsune…"
"That's right…"
"…When she does pass… will you escort her for me?"
Botan smiled brightly. "You know I would… I'll do my best."
"I'm not really asking for your best… just for you to be there…"
"Okay…" Botan murmured. She stared at the ground still. "You know… I wish I had someone like your mother… I wish I also had someone like Yusuke…"
"You will. I know it…"
"…"
"Well, thank you for lending your ear to me… you're really easy to talk to…"
"Anytime, Shuuichi-kun…" Botan kindly whispered.
Kurama stopped in front of Genkai's temple. Botan blinked. They were here already? "Ah…" she stared, her mouth wide open. Boy did the time pass. Kurama placed his hand on hers and gently lifted it up from his arm. She blushed.
"Ku-Kurama-kun, I'm sorry!" she sputtered. She jumped off of him with her face now blushing madly.
He shook his head. "No, it's fine… I rather liked it, anyway."
Botan stared at him with surprise. Her face grew redder. She bowed down immediately. "Thank you and have a good day!" she stammered and shot off to the temple.
~*~
After seeing Kurama leaving the area, she skipped off to go to his house. Botan knew that Kurama has gone off to school for his after-school clubs and so she wanted to visit Shiori Minamino to ask a favor. Her heart pounded rapidly whenever she thought about him. She didn't even know what this feeling was and how she would react to it so she was also seeking advice from her. Keiko at the moment had her hands full with Yusuke and Yukina wouldn't be able to help her at all. Shizuru didn't seem like a good option at all.
She knocked on the door hastily.
"… Hello, Botan-san, it's good to see you, but, Shuu-chan is at school at the moment…" Shiori greeted warmly after opening the door. Botan shook her head.
"No, Minamino-san, I came to see you."
Shiori's smile grew fond. "Well, then, do come in," she happily said. The door opened wide and she entered the household. "Please make yourself at home, would you like anything to eat?"
"No, its fine, Minamino-san, I just came to ask a favor." Botan panted, still tired from running.
Shiori nodded dotingly. They entered the kitchen and Shiori offered a seat which Botan gratefully took. Shiori sat down in front of her and clasped her hands together. "So, what is it?"
"…Well, Can you teach me how to make home-made chocolate?"
Shiori looked at her surprised yet also very happily. "Of course, but… why don't you ask your mother… or…"
Botan sweated. "Well, my mother… she doesn't have a clue about making chocolate… and well… my friends are also out and… well, yeah…"
"How did you know I make chocolate?"
Botan sweated even more. "I had a feeling you did…"
"Well, you have a great feeling, want to start now?"
"Yes! Thank you, Minamino-san!" Botan rose from her seat and bowed down respectfully.
"It's no problem at all… please call me Shiori, Botan-san."
Botan nodded excitedly. Shiori got up from her seat and gathered bowls and spoons from her cupboard. She set it down on the counter and signaled Botan to rinse it off first. She followed her instructions and watched her get the remaining ingredients.
"So, Botan-san… who are you planning to give it to?" Shiori questioned.
Botan blushed deeply. "A friend… a good friend… and I will give the others chocolate too…" she answered.
"So… you're planning to give Honmei-Choco to someone this year?"
"…Maybe… though… he doesn't like me…"
"You don't know that, you'll have to try and it's Valentine's Day. What could be better?" Shiori took the pan from Botan's hand and started to make the batter on the stove. Botan stared at the mix, helping her a few times to put in the components.
"But… what if you're rejected?"
"Well, just keep your head up and find someone else you like. You should wait until White Day for your answer, actually. It might take time for him to think it over."
Botan watched the mix turn a dark brown color. "What's White Day?"
Shiori stopped mixing and stared at her. "You don't know White Day?"
Botan nodded embarrassingly.
Shiori moved away from the stove and gestured Botan to come and handed her the mixing spoon mixing spoon. Botan continued the job Shiori was doing. "Well, White day is similar to Valentine's Day… On Valentine's Day… the girls give chocolate to the boys and on White Day the boys return the favor…"
"…I thought that you just give chocolate to whoever you want to…"
"Yes, there is that… but this is a custom too."
Botan nodded thoughtfully. "I see…"
"But, whenever White Day approached… Shuu-chan never prepared any chocolate or get ready for anything… So I guess my chocolate skills got a little rusty…" Shiori laughed, but her eyes didn't seem to respond.
Botan continued to rotate the stick in silence until her curiosity finally took over. "Ku-Shuuichi-kun never liked anyone?"
Shiori nodded sadly. "Well… there was Maya…"
"Maya?"
Shiori shook her head. "That isn't of much importance anyway… so; may I know who this lucky boy would be?" Shiori teased.
Botan blushed even more. "It's no one…"
"No one? He must be important for you to give him Honmei-Choco."
"… I guess…" When the batter got thick, Shiori handed her a few molds to select from. She thought it over for a while and smiled when she spotted the perfect mold. Roses… "…I don't know if I like him or not… we've been friends for some time and… I don't want to ruin it."
"You're friends… he'll understand."
"Yeah, I guess he is the type to…" Botan licked her fingers when chocolate got on it. She grinned and complimented Shiori on it. The mother just smiled widely.
"So, what is his personality?"
Botan turned off the heat and stared a fond smile placed across her lips. "He's definitely sweet… he has a great smile… everyone loves him… he's handsome… he's very smart… oh, I could go on for hours, Shiori-san!"
Shiori smiled warmly. I think she now understood who she was talking about. "Well, I wish you luck."
"Thank you…" Botan lifted up the hot mixture and poured it over the rose molds.
~*~
Valentine's Day
Botan hurried over to the Minamino residence once again. She knocked on the door more gently this time and waited for an answer. Shiori opened the door and greeted her warmly once again.
"Where's Shuu…"
"He's in the backyard planting his roses…" she interrupted.
Botan blinked. "How'd you…"
"I had a feeling…"
Botan bowed down and ran over to the gate. The gift wrapped box was held close to her pounding heart when she came upon the gate. Her amethyst eyes brightened when she saw the person she wanted to see all this time. "Kurama-kun!" She called out the red haired male who had the hose in his hands. His emerald green eyes met hers and he waved at her.
"Good-morning!" he said as he came up to her.
Botan blushed deeply. The box full of chocolate suddenly moved its way to her back. Kurama opened the gate and welcomed her in.
"What are you doing here so early? Is anything up?"
"No, I just came for a visit."
Kurama stared at the ground now. "… Thanks…"
"What are you doing today?"
"Nothing much. Only expecting many cards and chocolates from others…"
"…Yeah, everyone will give you Honmei-Choco, right?"
He nodded. "It's really bothersome…"
"Oh…"
"… What will you do?"
Botan stared at the flowers sadly. "… Yusuke and Keiko have gone out for the day… Kuwabara and Yukina also have gone along and I expect Hiei is following them… I can't go back to Rekai since I'm on a break… Shizuru is out for today to who knows where and… you… you're the only one here to go with…"
"… You want to watch me receive chocolate from other people?"
"… At least I'm not alone…"
Kurama stared at the roses that he was planting and Botan did the same. Her face was still flushed though. "Um… Kurama-kun?"
"What?"
"I-I have…"
He turned to face her; his eyes seemed to be expectant of something.
"… I have…"
The sprinklers came on.
They stood there.
Botan's face still flushed in embarrassment like Kurama.
"Well, should have known that would happen!" He laughed. They stood there, soaking wet.
"Kurama-kun… I want to give you my Honmei-Choco!" Botan blurted out.
Kurama stared at her.
"Honmei-Choco?"
"Yes!" Botan shoved the package forward. Her face still blushing madly.
Kurama stared at her. His eyes grew compassionate. "…This means a lot to me…" he murmured.
Botan stared at his eyes. "…but, you always get Honmei-Choco!"
"…I never got it from you…" he smiled.
Botan blushed more.
"Did you buy it?"
"Home-made… Me and Shiori-san… we did it together…"
Kurama's smile widened. "Honmei-Choco… it's for lovers, right?"
Botan nodded. "It's shaped like roses… I hope you like it…"
Kurama brushed her blue bangs away and leaned forward. Their lips met. It was the most blissful feeling that they have ever experienced.
Shiori Minamino stood on the porch, watching the two share a kiss. She smiled warmly and murmured, "Finally…"
A/N: I was going to add in this sooner, but my mom was threatening to throw a mug at my head… seriously. *disturbed face* Okay, I had this idea up in my head for a while, so I typed this up instead of "Damnable Angel" chapter 5. ^-^ Anyway, if I have the Japanese stuff all mixed up, don't hesitate to tell me, I only got Honmei-Choco and Giri-Choco from a book!
Ja Ne!