Note: Any OOCness on Hiei's part is probably just him acting like he's in love with Botan, not the way he acts naturally.

Last Chapter...

After Botan finished drying off the best she could, still mumbling about how fire demons shouldn't interrupt people's pleasurable dreams, they told Kurama their goodbyes and left the fox's house to go Reikai...

Love Me, Hate Me, Just Don't Let Me Fall

Chapter 4: Koenma's Deal

After Koenma had left Kurama's house, he went straight to Reikai. He went into his office and ordered everyone to stay away until Botan arrived. Then sat down at his desk and thought over the events of the past few days. What had he done wrong? Why didn't Botan love him back? Is Hiei the guy she loved instead?

Thinking of how Botan had hugged Hiei at Kurama's house, Koenma assumed that Hiei was, in fact, the guy she had rejected him for. Just the thought of Hiei touching HIS Botan made Koenma angry. If Hiei weren't such a powerful fighter, Koenma would be tempted to challenge him to a duel.

Eventually, Koenma fell asleep at his desk. Since he had ordered everyone to leave him alone, nobody came in to move his unconscious form to his bedroom.

The next day, the godling awoke to the sound or someone knocking on his office door. He looked around, wondering why he wasn't in his bedroom, when he suddenly remembered what had happened the night before. A wave of sadness hit him, heartbroken over his lost love.

"Koenma, sir! Botan has arrived, along with Hiei!" an oni announced

Koenma decided to try and forget his pain for now. He ordered them to be sent in and for nobody to disturb them.

Botan and Hiei stepped into his office and stood side by side in front of where Koenma's desk. The god glared at Hiei, the source of his unhappiness, willing the fire demon to just die or at least leave him be. In return, the fire demon gave Koenma a death glare with much more ferocity than the godling's. For several moments this battle of death glares lasted as Botan glanced nervously from Hiei to Koenma, wondering if they were planning to attack each other.

Koenma finally gave up on the staring contest he could not win. "So... Hiei, you're the mystery guy Botan likes so much, ne?"

"I didn't come here to make small talk, godling," Hiei replied. Any hope Koenma had of having a decent conversation disappeared.

"Okay, then what did you come for?" Koenma asked. He wondered vaguely, should Hiei decide to attack, would anyone save him?

"Cancel the wedding."

Koenma shook his head and said, "I'm sorry, Hiei, but I can't do that. Botan, I do love you, you know, and it's not like I can just tell my father to call it off. You've no idea the trouble I went through to convince Father to have it arranged on such short notice."

Hiei took a few steps forward, quickly closing the gap between him and Koenma. "Leave me and my future mate alone, or else..." He then pulled out sword and ran his tongue over the blade slowly, smirking evilly. The fire demon hoped to intimidate the godling, and so far it was working.

Although this really, REALLY creeped him out, Koenma refused to let Hiei have the satisfaction of knowing. Looking at Botan for verification, he asked, "Future mate...!"

Botan smiled and nodded happily. She stepped closer to Hiei and put a hand on his shoulder. He immediately resheathed his sword and wrapped an arm around her possessively.

"Hai, Koenma. I love Hiei, and he loves me in return."

Just the sight of Hiei so close to Botan and touching her in such an intimate manner made Koenma's blood boil. Here was this mere youkai, the Forbidden Child of the Koorime no less, with Botan, a former ferry girl and assistant to the Reikai Tantei! Botan deserved much better than this demon; a god, such as himself, would be more suitable for a perfect creature like her. But, unfortunately, Botan controls her own life, and Koenma would never even think of forcing her into something!

It took a few moments for Koenma to gather his wits and fight down the overcoming emotions of jealousy and anger. When he finally composed himself, he sat up straighter in his chair and cleared his throat. "Very well, Botan shall not be my bride."

"And what about my job! I want to be a ferry girl again!"

Koenma knew he could never have Botan as a bride and she deserved to have her job back, but what could he get out of it? After a few moments of careful consideration, he thought of a deal that might just work.

"Fine. I swear that I won't marry Botan, and I will make her a ferry girl once more," Koenma stated. Botan grinned triumphantly, but the smile faded slightly once he continued. "Only under two conditions: one, you will have to prove to me that you truly love each other. I will not stand to have Botan's heart broken by you, Hiei. Second, you have to find me a suitable bride. Since Botan is obviously not going to marry me and my father won't cancel the wedding, I am in need of a fiancé."

Although Koenma would still hurt inside from Botan's rejection, he was willing to make this sacrifice for her sake. Perhaps, if they find a good enough girl, Koenma would be able to move on with his life and love his future fiancé as much as he loved Botan.

Hiei didn't want to have to prove his love nor find Koenma a new bride. Who did the godling think he was, trying to make Hiei do these things! He was ready to argue that he shouldn't have to do such trivial tasks when Botan said, "Fine, we'll accept your offer."

The fire demon's eyes widened and he hissed, "Nani!"

Botan rolled her eyes. "Oh come on! What, do you want him to just do what you want without getting something in return? You of all people should know how that works, Mr. Selfish-Fire-Demon!"

"Hn."

"And hn to you too!"

"Hn."

"Quit saying hn all the time!"

"Hn."

"STOP IT!"

"Hn."

"ARGH!"

"Hn."

"SHUT UP!"

During the time it took for those two to argue, Koenma had made a contract stating their deal and signed his name at the bottom. Handing both the contract and a pen to Botan, she signed it and then handed it to Hiei, who also signed it, albeit reluctantly. Koenma snatched the contract from Hiei before he could destroy it and put it away in one of his desk drawers.

"How long do we have to find a bride for you, Koenma?" Botan asked.

"The wedding will be in approximately a month."

"Okay, and how in the three worlds are we supposed to prove that we love one another!"

The godling thought for a moment before saying, "You two go away while I prepare some tests for you. I'll call for you when everything is ready. In the meantime, please stay in Reikai and NO STEALING. Got that, Hiei?"

"Hn."

"Come on, Hiei, let's go," Botan said as she led him out of Koenma's office.