Please see disclaimer in Chapter 1. Comprehensive author's notes will appear at the end of the final chapter. In the meantime, comments and criticism are relished. Please enjoy your reading.
~~~~~
"Going Gently"
By Port
Chapter 4
Men enjoyed dates.
Botan was no fool. She'd silently visited hundreds of thousands of humans and demons over the years, invisibly coming among them to collect the dead. The accumulated moments of observation amounted to centuries, and she felt familiar with most of their customs and values. Recently, she'd begun watching television with Yusuke, which made her even more of an expert. On all the shows, men considered it a great honor for a girl to accept their invitations to dinner.
Kurama stood, waiting for her answer.
"You would… enjoy taking me out to dinner?"
"I would consider it an honor."
It was as she thought. "No, thank you."
Kurama's fair face cocked to the left as she walked past him.
"But Botan—" He pivoted and caught up, one stride keeping up with two of her own.
"Yes, Kurama?"
He opened his mouth, but a few beats passed before he asked, "Why not?"
Somehow, against the cumulative force of her entire store of reflexes, some latent sense made her remain cool. She looked into his wide eyes. They stared back at her. Was this really the sly Youko Kurama who had stolen a thousand jewels from five hundred demons? The stolid and deadly fighter of Demon World fame who had defeated a Saint Beast single-handedly? The cruel trickster who had stolen two oars from a messenger of King Yama?
It was true. This confused, stung human boy she'd rejected was the Youko Kurama. Of a sudden, she felt guilty. This was too pathetic! The change was—wait! There was no change, for he had never expected her to refuse!
What an ego he has, she thought. He doesn't understand why I said no.
"Why not what?" she asked.
"Why not—Botan. You are being coy now."
She blinked a few times, extra-aware of her long lashes. "Am I?"
He sighed and stopped walking. She stopped too and waited while he recollected himself. It was a visible process. She watched, in fascinated disgust. Look how his back straightens, and there's that calmness on his face again. No more crease between the eyebrows or arrogant pout. Hands too. Must unclench them. Strangely, she found her own hands turning into claws. What is wrong with me?
"Botan," he finally said, "I see you are still angry at me, even though it happened months ago. But I would like to be your friend, since we are on the same team now. Will you allow me this gesture to make things right between us?"
She wanted to, actually. The dinner meant nothing, but she needed to rid herself of this grudge. Being mean was driving her crazy, and besides, it might have bad consequences on a battlefield. If she had a chance to fix things, then she should take it.
As she began to nod, Kurama's mouth curved into a smile, reminding her again of how much she loathed his happiness. Really, she thought, unclenching her own hands, she needed to become a nice person again, but how was that possible when all these situations came out in Kurama's favor?
She said, "I hope that after dinner, we can consider ourselves even, Kurama."
~~~~~
Kurama had not thought often of the time he kissed Botan under the forest canopy. But as he dressed for the date, he kept drifting back to the experience of pressing his face to her own. It had not been unpleasant, but he had been more excited about putting his brilliant plan into action, and when his hand fastened about the wooden oar, he had felt a surge of satisfaction that left him silent and happy while Botan, silent and happy herself, though less willing to admit it, recovered from his maneuver.
He always remembered the incident with an inner cackle. Later tonight, however, he would rethink that attitude.
Botan had shown up in a sky blue and white jumper with a knee-high skirt and solid, grey stockings. She'd pinned her hair in a simple French twist, and little strands fell from it to create a wispy blue halo about her face. Kurama wasn't sure, but he thought she was wearing lipstick and some other makeup. Something about her scent was alcoholic and flowery, hinting at minimal dabs of perfume, probably on her neck.
In short, upon seeing her, he felt an instant fondness for Botan. She wasn't beautiful by modern human standards. There was nothing mature or sexy in her looks. But she was Botan, with her amazing smile and immortal eyes. And she'd dressed up for him.
His fondness swelled as they walked together to the restaurant. They chatted the entire way, and not once did she appear uncomfortable or angry at him. The iciness was gone. A little wary at first, he'd mentioned the change.
"I'm glad to see you looking happy this evening, Botan."
She blushed—blushed! "I'm a little surprised myself, Kurama. I suppose I've been eager for this chance to fix things."
In short, he got taken in. But he wouldn't realize it for a while yet. Her giggle made him smile, and her pert attitude put him at ease. By the time they were seated, Kurama thought back to his first meeting with Botan and remembered it for the kiss itself. How lucky he was to have kissed a girl like Botan.
They ordered quickly and fell into a companionable silence after the waiter left. Botan looked up as Kurama cleared his throat.
"Botan, now that I have this chance, I'd like to formally apologize for stealing your oar a few months ago. There was no sense in doing so. I did it because I could, not because I needed to."
For the first time that night, her face looked stern.
"Will you accept my apology?"
"Kurama…. If you apologize for both times, I'll forgive you."
She'd set her lower lip; it was so cute.
"I'm afraid I can't apologize for the first time. The only reason I'm here now is because I took your oar and escaped to the Human World. To apologize for saving my own life would be… ridiculous."
As expected, she darkened, like a reduced flame, albeit one about to flare. Still, her words were remarkably calm.
"Kurama, what you did was ridiculous. You cheated and delayed your afterlife. You must know that one day you'll see me and be unable to escape." He laughed, but she didn't. "Meanwhile, you put your soul into terrible danger."
"What kind of danger?"
"Didn't you feel it?"
He narrowed his eyes. Was she referring to…. "There was a sort of weakness after a few days. Then it began to feel like a wound. But it stopped after I entered my human body. Is that what you mean?"
She nodded. "When a soul does not go to the Spirit World or inhabit a body, and when it resists other paths and does what it pleases, it risks becoming anchored to a time or place and existing as a… sort of ghoul. You forget who you are and know only your strongest emotions, which take control of you. Over centuries, you simply fade away until there's nothing left. I'm glad you avoided that, but I'm angry that you put yourself into the position in the first place."
In his thoughtful expression, surprise must have been apparent. She said, "I'm not a ghoul, Kurama. I'm glad for your good fortune, and I don't want you to die."
"That much is reassuring," he said, finally drawing a smile from her. "Since that's the case, I wish you wouldn't be angry at me, Botan. It is… distracting."
"Oh?" Then that low flame exploded. No longer didactic, she flared passionately. "I have to deal with a coworker who's humiliated me—twice!—in front of my prince, and you're distracted?"
Kurama looked from side to side to see if she'd disturbed anyone, but it seemed Botan only gave the impression of yelling. While her delivery was shrill, it was remarkably quiet. And it was completely honest. Kurama, who was used to a certain level of subterfuge even from his friends, admitted to himself that he didn't know how to proceed. That probably explained what he said next.
"Did my actions humiliate you in front of Koenma?"
She stared at him. While Kurama tried to read the thoughts behind her narrowed, glistering eyes, he began to realize he'd lost control of the conversation.
"Imagine," she said at last, "calling the son of the Lord of Death to ask for a ride back from the Demon World. Imagine reporting that the soul you were sent to collect had escaped on your oar that he stole from you. Imagine that during the investigation Koenma uses his magic viewing screen to watch a recording of the entire thing! Now imagine having dinner with that thief fifteen years later and being asked by him, 'Did my actions humiliate you?'"
They stared at each other, one holding back tears of frustration and the other baffled.
"I'll just come back with your drinks another time," said the waiter, who had been politely standing by. He hurried away.
Botan began to get up.
"Botan, don't leave yet," Kurama said.
She sniffed. "I'm just going to the ladies' room. I want to check my lipstick." She swiped at her eyes and hurried off. Kurama watched her leave.
"Apparently, I humiliated her," he murmured. He turned back around in his seat. Funny. Looking back, he'd always thought he'd done everything exactly right that day. The ruse, the kiss, the theft. It had all been perfect. Perfect! Except for one thing. He had liked Botan before he kissed her and stole the oar, yet he'd done it anyway. Fifteen years ago, hurting her had made no difference. But now, now he owed her. Not just because they had to work together. No, he owed her because he still liked her. And heaven help him, he was beginning to feel bad for what he'd done.
The mental image didn't help. He imagined the scene in Koenma's office. Botan standing in misery, yet proud, beside Koenma's oversized desk. Koenma pressing the play button on his remote control, maybe with some help from his assistant, George the ogre. The screen displaying the foliage of Kurama's old home, and beneath it, Kurama and Botan making small talk on that log. Then the kiss, and in the office, Botan's face going red at the same moment Koenma's does, only for a different reason. A few seconds later, if Koenma hasn't started yelling or choking by now, the audience watches Kurama zip away into the sky, laughing and clever, while the Botan on the screen stands shocked in the clearing, wondering with dread how she's supposed to report something like this to Koenma.
With that in mind, he decided he probably should have gone about escaping death without dishonoring Botan.
When Botan came back, her eyes were dry, and she even smiled shyly at him. He stood for her while she sat down, but didn't take his seat yet.
"Botan," he said, "I think I understand now what it must have been like for you." He bowed low. Behind him, finding the aisle suddenly blocked, the waiter stumbled and spilled their drinks all over his shirt. Ignored by the couple, he turned back to the kitchens. Kurama rose and said, "I apologize for embarrassing you."
She looked at him with, of all things, a pink blush. "Kurama, please sit down. After…. After tonight, I'll forgive you. We'll be even. Is that all right?"
"That's what I want, Botan," he said. "Thank you." He inclined his head to her and took his seat. They sat in silence for a few moments, not quite companionable anymore, until Kurama asked a question. "Would you tell me what was the result of the investigation?"
Botan looked up from the silverware she'd been admiring. "I'm sorry?"
"You weren't punished for the incident, were you? If so, I'll go to Koenma and demand a punishment as well."
"Kurama, no! I said after tonight we're even. You mustn't go to Koenma. He's just starting to let off on teasing me."
"Teasing you?"
"It's Koenma we're talking about here."
Kurama frowned. "I won't be able to rest until I know what happened to you because of me."
"Nothing very bad, actually. I got reassigned from Demon World duty to the Human World. And because of that I met Yusuke and Kuwabara. So it turned out all right after all. I've just been mad about the incidents themselves." She smiled broadly, looking for the first time since their conversation like the sparkly girl he'd known before. "And that's wearing off as we speak. I'm so glad we're doing this, Kurama."
"Then I am too," he said, though the old, wily part of him missed the bliss of ignorance. "What about after the Spirit World incident?"
Botan blushed again. "Well, Koenma did laugh at me a lot for losing my oar again. Oh, please don't look so mad about that, Kurama. I'm just telling you so you'll understand, okay? That worked out well too, because Koenma was also impressed that I tried to stop you. He rewarded me with a physical body to help with Spirit Detective missions."
"Excuse me," Kurama said to the waiter, who was staring at them, their drinks forgotten in one hand. "I believe those are our drinks."
"Ah, yes, yes. Here." He wandered away, casting distracted glances back at them.
"I'm glad something good came from my mistake, Botan." She smiled across at him. "Tell me, how does a ferry girl get a physical body?"
"Metaphysics," she answered. "Something to do with transmutation of spiritual energies. My spirit form becomes corporeal. I'm not even sure I totally understand it myself. But it works, so that's enough for me. Whenever I need to, I just revert back and forth between forms and dimensions. And it's so useful. I wouldn't have been able to help Keiko at all when the demon insects came."
"And we wouldn't have had this dinner," said Kurama, turning on the charm. "Do you like being a human?"
"It's okay. Nothing like being immortal, though." She sipped her drink. "What about you?"
"I miss my old strength," he admitted. "But humanity is keeping my wits just as sharp."
For some reason, she smiled into her glass.
~~~~~
The evening passed amicably from that point. They both told stories from their long lives of experience, not touching the events that had brought them together. Botan giggled a lot, and Kurama found himself smiling often. They discovered a mutual love for poetry. Botan was perhaps the only person Kurama knew who loved death poems without being morbidly depraved. He found the theme fascinated her.
"I see it from one perspective," she told him. "But humans and demons see it from the opposite." She'd unintentionally brought the topic closer to their original dispute, so she covered by quoting an English sonnet composed by John Donne. "'One short sleep past, we wake eternally /And death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die.' Amazing, isn't it?"
"What about it?"
"How they can be correct and wrong at the same time."
He wasn't following, but he wasn't about to say so. After a moment, she continued. "There is nobody in the Spirit World called Death. I joked with Yusuke when I met him. Called myself the Grim Reaper. But I'm just a ferry girl. Humans, however, believe in death."
"I have a book you might enjoy," Kurama said, uncomfortable with her implications. "It's a compilation of poems written by Buddhist monks in their dying moments. Would you be interested?"
Her grin answered him, and they made arrangements for her to stop by his house the following afternoon. By the time the check arrived, Kurama discovered they'd taken an hour over their coffee and dessert. It had felt like minutes.
"I'll be right back," he said, taking the check and walking to the cashier. He felt her eyes on him while he walked away from her, but he couldn't tell what that meant. At any rate, he soon forgot all about Botan's eyes, for when he reached into his pocket, he could not find his wallet.
No, no, that was impossible. He had put it in his pocket before leaving the house. He distinctly remembered doing so. Didn't he?
Quickly, he reached into both pockets and found nothing but his house keys. "This isn't possible," he said.
"Can I help you?" the cashier asked, noticing the crumpled bill in his hand.
He nodded. "I'll be back in just one moment."
He strode to the table. It can't have dropped, he thought. No possible way. Still, he scanned his chair and the floor around it with quick fox eyes. All he found was Botan looking at him in puzzlement from beneath the halo of her hair.
"Is anything wrong, Kurama?"
His breath hitched, but he covered by shaking his head and smiling. "Of course not." Think fast, he thought.
"Good. Are we ready to go?" She started to get up.
"No, actually. Please sit back down. I still need to pay the check. Just a few minutes."
"All right."
He went back to the cashier and checked all of his pockets twice on the way. No wallet. The cashier smiled up at him. "Does the restaurant have a phone?" he asked.
~~~~~
It wouldn't do for his mother to have to look for him in the crowded restaurant after coming all the way down in the middle of the night. So Kurama was obliged to wait near the entrance. He was standing next to a middle-aged couple waiting to be seated when Botan walked over to him. "Kurama? Is everything okay? Why are you standing over here?"
He felt warmth creep over his cheeks. How he did miss his old strength. "Botan," he said, feeling as embarrassed as he ever had, but trying to appear dignified. "I'm afraid I… left my wallet at home."
"You did?"
"I had to call my mother to ask her to bring it to the restaurant. I'm sorry for not telling you earlier, but I was hoping she'd be here before you noticed." He clenched his fists, very angry with himself, but not showing that either.
Botan looked at him seriously, as if examining his face or memorizing it. Kurama burned under her gaze.
"I am sorry, Botan. It may be a little while before she gets here." Actually, he suspected he'd woken his mother up. "I was planning to escort you home, but you may want to leave early. I'll understand." Please, he thought, go home before this night gets any worse. Mother didn't sound too pleased with me.
"Oh, no, Kurama. I'll stick it out with you. I'd feel bad leaving you all alone over here. Just let me get my jacket from the table so they can use the space."
Kurama watched her go and allowed himself to put his hand to his forehead. He'd never forgotten his wallet! Never! How could this have happened? Why on the night of a date with someone he wanted to impress? He sighed deeply. This was worse than if he'd been on a date with a girl he liked romantically. Human girls were awfully understanding if they liked you already. But Botan would remember this, and they had to work together. Why? Why?
"Don't worry, kid. She still likes you." Kurama turned to see the couple beside him glowering benignly. The man winked at him. "I saw a glimmer in her eye and a pretty smile on her face just now. You still got a chance."
Kurama bowed, mostly just to hide his glowing face. Suddenly, the room felt very warm.
Behind him, the door opened, letting in a long, cold draft. "Shuuichi!"
"Mother!" He turned to see her dressed in a wrinkled blouse, a black pair of pants, and a long brown trenchcoat. Her long hair was a mess, piled on the top of her head and held with a few pins. Even after scrambling out of bed in the middle of the night, Shiori was beautiful, but since she was in a bad mood, she looked downright scary. Kurama repressed a gulp. "Thank you for coming so quickly."
The couple was looking at him in amusement, and the cashier was just looking at him. As were many of the people at nearby tables. And his mother. She cast her eyes to the folded bill in his hand. "Is that the check?"
"Yes." He led her to the cashier. "If you'll just give me my wallet, I'll take care of it from here," he said.
"I couldn't find your wallet, Shuuichi," she said.
"It should have been on my desk. Did you look there?"
"I looked all over your room, Shuuichi. It's so clean in there I couldn't have missed it."
"Then…." He looked at her miserably, and the loss of pride he radiated must have been powerful. Suddenly Shiori wasn't scary anymore.
"Don't worry. I'll help you this time. Even though you woke me up." She stroked his hair and smiled through her tired eyes. He smiled back, feeling—if possible—even smaller than before.
"Thank you, Mother."
Shiori was handing the cashier some cash when Botan came back. She had her coat in her hands and smiled at Kurama when he turned around. "Is everything better now?" she asked.
"Yes, now that my mother's here," Kurama said without thinking. Somebody at a nearby tabled snickered. Kurama scowled, then sighed. "Would you like to meet her?"
"I would be honored," Botan said. "You've told me so much about her tonight."
"All good things, I hope," Shiori said, cutting into the conversation.
"Mother, this is my friend, Botan. She's Yusuke's classmate. Botan, meet my mother."
"A pleasure, Mrs. Minamino."
"Likewise."
"Please don't be too hard on your son. He's been such a gentleman that I couldn't stand to think of him getting in trouble on my account."
Kurama sighed again. He ushered them outside, grateful for the cool air against his flaming skin. His mother headed for her car while Kurama said goodbye to Botan. "I really do hope that tonight will somehow make up for my mistakes," he said. "Are we even now? Please be honest. If there's something else I can do, I'll be glad."
"I'm glad already, Kurama. I'm no longer angry, and I look forward to being your friend."
He smiled. "If only all conflicts could be resolved with a dinner date. Will you be all right getting home?"
"Of course. Good night, Kurama."
"Good night."
~~~~~
Early the next morning, a school-free day, the phone woke Shiori while Kurama was in the shower. He came into his room a few minutes later to find a note on his desk. It said the police had called to say somebody had found his wallet. The wallet was waiting for him at the station, and the address was written on the bottom of the sheet. Shiori would have lunch ready at 12:30, so he better go get it beforehand. Would his friend, Botan, want tea when she visited this afternoon?
Kurama dressed, told his mother he'd be back soon and added that he'd invite Botan in for tea when she stopped by. Then he went to the police station.
The officer who handed him his wallet didn't know who had turned it in nor the circumstances in which it had been found. Kurama stopped outside the station to flip through the pockets and sleeves. A born thief, he marveled at finding everything as he'd last seen it. Cash, identity cards, his ATM card, spare checks, and photos of his human mother and father. He had not lost a single yen, nor any other item.
But one thing was new. He found it in the sleeve containing his cash: a heavy, rough-textured piece of paper with formally stylized characters, hand-written as if the writer had been taught by ancient religious scribes how to draw letters. It said,
"Kurama, we are even now. –Botan"
He sat on the police station steps for a long time, the note crumpled in his clenched hand.
On getting home before noon, he repaid his mother for the previous night, even though she tried not to accept it. They shared a pleasant lunch that did nothing to lessen his feelings, though he didn't display them at all. By this time he'd replayed the dinner in his mind and decided that she must have taken it when going to "check her lipstick." Anything was possible for someone who could in effect become invisible at whim.
When Botan came to his house, she found him sitting on the steps and smiled. "Good afternoon, Kurama. How are you?"
"Displeased," he said, standing up. He took out the note she'd left him and calmly tore it in half. Botan gasped. Then they said a lot of things to each other and Botan left. Kurama went back inside the house.
"Shuuichi," his mother said later that evening. "I saw the book you said you were going to lend Botan still on the shelf. Did you have trouble finding it before she left?"
"Actually," he said, "I decided not to lend it to her after all."
~~~~~
To be continued in Chapter 5.
Author's Notes:
I'd like to thank the following people. Your comments have been delightful: Candace, Darling Chii, Botans-lil-sis, DeityofRoses, ViciousKitsune, Sakky, Anichan, Thundercat, KitsuneGirl. Thank you all for your continuing support!
Pipao: Thank you too. I'm not sure how I can help with the name problem, though. It doesn't seem practical to incorporate the Western names into the story. Out of curiosity, are those names from the Filipino translation of the show? I'd heard the dub there uses English names. (Somehow, though, Kurama doesn't strike me as a Dennis….) But thanks for the encouragement, and I hope it stops being confusing after a while!