Disclaimer: I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho.

Pairing: Kurama/Botan.


Too young for you?

Synopsis: Botan hates it when you get the wrong idea.


"... and this young lady, right here. Is she, perhaps, one of your apprentices?"

Botan's eyebrows twitched, and she fought hard not to let her polite smile slip off from her face. 'He doesn't know,' she thought. 'It's not malicious.'Right. However, when she caught Kurama stifling a laugh from the corner of her eyes, she had to summon all her willpower not to glare at him or stomp away from the place. Throwing a tantrum in public would barely help her case.

That was not the first time something like this happened, and she knew it would probably not be the last.

In the beginning, she tried to show herself understanding and not let it get to her. It was not surprising people would mistake her for his employee whom he was treating for lunch whenever they were out. But enough is enough.

Being a supernatural creature who would borrow a human body once in a while meant her beauty was pretty much frozen in time. And age was not a notion she cared about anymore. When you have already lived a few hundred years, looking young was not something you would unwelcome. Youthfulness has been an obsession across realms and eras, with people going to great lengths to preserve their own.

Upon first receiving her human body- or instead container- from Koenma, they took care to model it after a fifteen-year-old version of herself. It was easier to pretend to be a friend of Yusuke that way. And like any human body, it grew and changed. So, of course, the body could (did) age, but only as long as her soul stayed inside of it. And she did not sojourn in the human world all the time. That's why, after nearly twenty-five years of use, it now assumed the appearance of a young woman in her mid-twenties. Not too different from her natural form, but she stood out like a sore thumb in the gang.

Initially, she did not mind it much. Why would a supernatural apparition be irked by something so insignificant to her kind? But it became a problem when she came to the realization her mate was partially-almost completely- human.

In his demon form as Youko Kurama, granted, he was just like her: youthful, an extraordinary beauty many envied. But as Shuichi Minamino, it was a whole other story.

Don't get her wrong. She thought he looked fantastic for his age. Probably the best-looking forty years old in the whole universe if you asked her. Time had been awfully generous to him, and while there was no more trace of his boyish yet delicate charms in his now rough, grave, and virile features, people did not stop showering him with compliments.

His once long, unruly red hair had gradually gotten shorter over the years. Maturing, he seemed to prefer it that way, mainly to feel and look more presentable at his family's company. Everyone also thought it suited him better. He had gotten a lot taller too. What used to be a couple of inches height difference between them stretched a lot, to the point he now hovered over her and almost all of their friends. Besides, of course, Kuwabara. The carrot top grew as well.

His figure had gotten a lot more imposing, his broad shoulders and his ever so confident way of carrying himself inspiring fascination and respect in everyone who crossed his path. Whenever he entered a room, leave it to him to command attention, even from the most intimidating fellows.

All of this was a problem.

They were vastly different, and her sparkly taste in clothing, coupled with her slowly aging envelop, made the gap painfully obvious and attracted many unwanted comments.

Most were not ill-intended. They were just obliviously dismissive. Older-looking women casually flirting with him and asking her his whereabouts, not considering her a potential rival for one second, made her both uncomfortable and jealous.

Inwardly, she always thought it ironic. She was more likely older than them, but they only saw a girl.

When she had luck, people would assume she's a sibling or, better yet, an apprentice. Most of the recent instances were like that. But she still got the occasional, scandalous, and pride-wounding demon: "Are you his daughter?"

That one got her shaking her head every time. She wondered how on earth she looked young enough to be his daughter, especially when he looked slightly younger than his actual age himself.

Sometimes, when people got it right, they would take him for a creep. So there was no winning situation.

"Actually," Kurama started, putting an arm around her waist, "This is my girlfriend, Botan."

A strange kind of relief washed over her, mixed with fluttering in her stomach at his answer. For some reason, hearing it from his mouth made her feel validated.

The red head's words seemed to take the older man in front of them by surprise as he stared back and forth between the two of them, eyes slightly wide before a knowing smile found its way to his lips. He laughed, "Well, I wouldn't have expected you to be into younger women, Minamino-san. But I guess that's the perks of being as attractive and successful as you are."

"Oh, not that young, Terazono-san. You'd probably find it hard to believe, but we've only got a couple of years apart. We've known each other since teenagehood." Kurama returned his smile, the fingers against her body discretely playing with the seam line on the side of her dress.

"Really?" Mr. Terazono looked even more surprised as he adjusted his glasses and peered at Botan in a way that prompted her to lean slightly back. "Well, I'm not sure if I should apologize for calling you young, but you're certainly one baby-faced woman."

"It's... fine. I get this quite often." Way too often, she added mentally but did not find the heart to be unpleasant towards the man. He seemed genuinely well-meaning.

"Good genes, am I right? Ah, I wish I could benefit from this too. That'd probably help my non-existent luck with women."

"Oh, but you're a complete gentleman. Looks fade away, but what's on the inside doesn't." The red-head punched him on the shoulder in a friendly way.

"You're too kind, but I wish that were this simple." He returned the solidary gesture before adjusting his suit. "Well then, I won't eat up your lovers time any longer. Allow me to excuse myself."

As he reached the cafe's exit, he turned towards them one last time, waving. "Your kids will sure be lookers. Enjoy yourself!"

No sooner had he left that Botan wriggled herself away from Kurama, walking straight to the waiting line ahead. She crossed her arms over her chest, frown not melting away from her features, even as she felt her lover sneak behind her and hug her from behind. "I think that went pretty smoothly this time around, didn't it?"

Trying hard to ignore the dumbfounded looks customers gave at their atypical couple, she turned at his comment and deadpanned, seemingly about to say something. But the way he was smiling, smiling as if he enjoyed her misery, made her look away, nose up tuned in the air.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"You and I don't have the same definition of smooth."

"Aww, what should I do for this pretty lady to stop sulking?"

A vein popped at her forehead. "I am not sulking."

"How do you think I feel when younger guys try hitting on you while I'm in the area?" He tightened his arms around and laughed as he gained himself another glare.

"Try's the keyword. Besides, I don't humor them the way you do."

She detached herself from him as it became their turn to order. After that, they walked up to an empty table for two near the bay window. He rushed to her side and pulled the chair for her, a gesture she grudgingly accepted before flopping down on her seat.

"Hey." He called out as he sat down across from her.

The deity looked away from the distraction the streets offered and raised a suspicious eyebrow at the smirking face greeting her. "...What?"

"Come closer." He beckoned with his index.

She did not move right away, opting instead to glare at him. But Kurama was an insistent fellow, and she knew he would not wipe off that unnerving smile, one he knew creeped her out until she complied.

With a sigh, she lifted her body a bit from the chair and leaned towards him. But before she could utter a word, a large and warm hand shot up to cup her cheek delicately, calloused fingers grazing her ear and jaw. It took her a few seconds to register the slow brushing of his lips against her own, and by the time she wanted to reciprocate the kiss, he pulled away, leaving her dumbfounded and irked.

She blushed furiously and was about to lash out, but her eyes flew wide when they heard someone standing very close clear their throat loudly.

"Hum..E-Excuse me. I...Here's your order—Berries shortcake for the miss and you Sir, Rose Tea and lemon pie?" The stammering waiter was not daring to look them in the eye. He, instead, kept fumbling with the small plates, his ears as red as the strawberry and cherry sitting on top of Botan's treat.

"Y-Yes," She awkwardly took her order from his grasp, Kurama mimicking her actions, and smiled though the blush only darkened at the thought of him having seen the exchange. "Thank you so much."

"These are our specialties. I hope...You-You'll like it!" They sweatdropped as they saw him basically running away, stubbing himself on a few tables on the go.

"I think he's got a crush on you." The redhead remarked, sipping on his tea. "At least he did when we arrived."

She snapped her head up at him, tearing them away from the mouth-watering pastry in front of her. "Don't tell me that's what the kiss was about!?"

His reply came in the form of another of his infuriating smiles, and she almost bent her fork as she tried not to jump on him. She sighed. "I hate you."

"Such a moving declaration." He replied sarcastically, reaching out to get a taste of the shortcake. "You don't have any ferrying shift later, right?"

She resisted the urge to swat his hand away. "What makes you think that?"

"You told me."

"Actually, I might show up in the end. I don't have anything better to do."

He ignored her taunting as he took a bite of the cherry on his fork, humming when its sweetness melted in his mouth. "I know we planned to take a walk around the park, but it's gotten a bit cold. I feel like going to my place would be a more comfy alternative. That will give us a chance to settle our differences and blow off some steam, don't you think?"

Her blush darkened at the implication.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" He asked, cocking his head innocently to the side. But she could see the malice in his eyes.

"You have some nerve. Suggesting that at a time like this."

"You had that in mind, anyway. Or was I mistaken?"

"What do you mean?" She narrowed her eyes.

Kurama picked up his cup once more and looked over the window, feigning a deep-in-thoughts look. "Hum...I wonder why you chose to wear the pink lace ensemble today? The one I bought you no less..."

Her eyes widened. "I can't believe it..." She covered her face with both of her hands, shaking her head. "What did I do to deserve this?"

The cute display of embarrassment elicited another laugh from him as he leaned in closer, whispering in her ear. "I believe today will be an excellent time to try out the handcuffs."


A/N: I don't even what that is, lol.

Somewhat the website doesn't wanna let me upload, for whatever reason :cries: Thanks god for the app.

I'm sorry for any typo etc, I'll probably do another round of editing on this later.

Times are still rough, so I hope everyone is taking care of themselves and holding on!

Wendy McCalister: I really want to explore this more! I've been drafting an outline for a possible multi chapters version of Remember. Hoping I'll be able to go through with it.

Aww, you're adorable. Thank you so much, dear. And yay! Another one joining the cult XD I'm legit sitting in front of a bunch of unfinished ...Bogiri? (There's no proper ship name for this pair...HagBo? HagTan? BoHa? God help me)drabbles, and trying to decide whether or not to post them :skull:

Looking forward to your big return Wendy, I hope everything's going well!

Kaikai.xoxo: Thank you so much!! I'm so happy you liked it! I relate with that xD I have troubles shipping Kurama with anyone other than Botan too T.T