Fear of Fire
Do not own YYH.
22
Outings
XXX
Botan whistled as she skipped down the street, on her way to Keiko's for a girl's night out. Keiko, Yukina, and Shizuru had been adamant about their plans and they told Botan that she wouldn't refuse.
"Baka." The voice halted her in her tracks and she whirled around to grin at its owner. "What are you so happy about?" She laughed and twirled in her new outfit, her eyes sparkling.
"Going out with the girls." Hiei raised a brow before scoffing at her sunny disposition. "Yukina and the others want me for the night so..." He noticed her overnight bag in her hands.
"Hn. They can keep you for all I care." He muttered as he crossed his arms. She pouted at him.
"Now, now, Hiei. I still love you! No need to be jealous." Rolling his eyes, the fire koorime merely leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on her lips before smirking and walking off.
"See you tomorrow." She stared after him, her eyes softening as she watched him until he disappeared. Hiei had been acting differently ever since he had stayed with her at her apartment.
That was a week ago... He hasn't said anything about the changes he's been going through. His spirit seems lighter, as though his dark memories are locked away forever...
She continued on her way to Keiko's, walking at a slower pace than before. Though the ferry girl would never admit it to her demon boyfriend, she was worried about him...
Keiko grinned as she pulled her friend into a tight embrace.
"I can't wait 'til we go out clubbing tonight! Thanks for suggesting this, Shizuru." Botan looked down at her skirt and spaghetti strap top. She felt bad for going out without Hiei but she could never take him to the places that the girls were going to.
"Yes, a night without the boys... It's going to seem so different." Yukina looked down at her outfit. Shizuru had suggested that the koorime should wear jeans and a t-shirt. The outfit brought out the curves that she hid with her kimono. The ice maiden had been embarrassed to wear the outfit at first but there wasn't any harm in it so she figured that she was okay.
"It'll be great! I can't wait to finally go out and have fun. Yuusuke never takes me anywhere." Botan watched her friends with a bright smile. She loved spending time with them. Hiei hadn't been angry when she'd said she was going. He hadn't gotten angry in a while.
"Well, all you girls have to do is your make-up and then we can go." Shizuru stated, lighting up a cigarette. She was cutting back on smoking around the girls but it wouldn't make a different at the club so... She went out to start the car and waited for the girls until they were finished. Botan made slight adjustments, as the others had, and then they rushed out the door.
The club was booming by the time they arrived, people crammed together, sweating and pressing close to one another. Botan and the others weaved their way through after being admitted through the doors. It was a club for adults but Shizuru had the right hook-ups and was allowed inside as long as Keiko didn't drink, which was a stupid request because the girl was against that kind of thing, anyway. They split up and lost themselves in the rhythm of the music. Botan let the beat flow through her body, allowing herself to let go.
"Hey." A smooth voice said at her side. She looked over, startled, to see a young man standing beside her. She grinned and returned his greeting. "Are you going to dance with anyone?"
"No..." She said quietly, her body slowly stopping its movement. "Why? Do you have anyone to dance with?" He shook his head and she smiled. "Well, then, why don't we solve that?"
XXX
Botan staggered out into the side alley, dropping to her knees as she tried to hold in her nausea. How long had it been since she drank? She briefly remembered champagne at a wedding or a party or something a year prior. Shizuru had talked her into a couple but then she had taken the rest upon herself.
"Man, Botan, you really can't hold your liquor." Shizuru stole a glance at the man that Botan had been dancing with. Surprisingly, she had known him and had even dated him for a brief time. "Thanks for helping her out here. Will you watch her while I go and get the others? It's almost one anyway." He nodded and waited patiently with the drunken deity.
"You're a good dancer." He said quietly as he sat down beside her. Botan looked up at him wearily and turned her head when she felt slightly sick. "I haven't had this much fun since I dated Shizuru-san."
"Y-You dated Shizuru?" He nodded.
"We went out for a brief period but split up mutually." He held her hair back when she got sick one last time. She felt like crap but she had been having fun... It wasn't like she was hooked on drinking. She probably wouldn't touch another alcoholic beverage for about a year or two. "She should be coming back out soon, all right?" He kept looking inside, like he was waiting so that he could be released from a duty.
"I had fun..." She whispered quietly. "Thank you for dancing with me." Her eyes went to the entrance of the alley. What would later bring...?
XXX
Botan stuck her key in the door and unlocked it, twisting the knob and pushing it open. She dropped her bag on the floor and went over to the couch, falling onto it and heaving a sigh. She felt terrible. Hangover city... No matter how much aspirin she took, it didn't help. Shizuru had given her two and had told her to go home and sleep it off. The ferry girl only hoped that her beloved didn't look for her for some time...
Groaning, she rolled over and fell off of her couch, hitting her head on her coffee table and giving her a migraine instead of a headache. The deity looked around her dark apartment. She'd heard something. Suddenly, the light flipped on and she nearly screamed if not for her instantaneous recognition of the person in the room.
"H-Hiei?" The koorime stood in the doorway between the living room and the kitchen, holding a glass of water. He raised a brow at her before turning around and continuing whatever he was doing before she'd made such a racket. "W-What are you doing...?" She rubbed her eyes before trailing after him.
"Making something to eat." He proceeded to eat his creation, which appeared to be a sandwich. "You've been out for some time."
"How long have you been here?" Hiei turned around and watched her sit down at the table, putting her head in her hands. "You should've woken me up."
"Hn." He was quiet as he chewed. "I didn't need you." She could sense amusement flaring from his aura. He was practically laughing at how pathetic she looked. "Go to bed." When she didn't do as he asked, he picked her up after finishing his sandwich.
"Hiei! Put me d-down!" She was shaky, especially after being scared awake by the thought of someone in her apartment. And then after hitting her head. The koorime continued as though he hadn't heard her. She squirmed in his grasp but to no avail. He wasn't releasing her. After setting her in her bed, he left the room to shut everything down. Botan took that time to slip into her nightgown and, as she was climbing into bed, Hiei walked back in. The fact that he had taken his cloak, boots and shirt off sort of disturbed her. "H-Hiei?"
"It's fine, onna." His voice was as cold as ever. But she sensed that he had come to terms with the restraint he had. A smile spread across her face before she reached out and pulled him into the bed with her. She pinned him beneath her and kissed him happily.
"I'm so proud of you! How did you...?" He stared up at her with his dark eyes before pulling her off of him to hold her beside him.
"I have undergone changes... Ones that I disliked until I recently discovered something new. I no longer worry about taking you. I no longer think of those disturbing thoughts of taking you too early." He pulled the covers over them and securely wrapped his arms around her waist. "I don't need to take you yet. This dating of yours seems similar to courting. As long as we do this to continue gaining knowledge of each other then all will work out as it should."
"I'm glad. As long as you're okay."
"I did not need to change too much."
XXX
"No way!" Yuusuke reached across the table and snatched one of Botan's donuts. "So, you and Hiei are an official couple, huh? He seriously accepted human terms for dating?" The ferry girl took a sip of her coffee and nodded.
"He said it seems similar to courting. I asked Kurama about it a couple of days ago. He said that it was true enough." The Reikai detective whistled. Then he let a grin flash across his handsome face.
"I'm happy you two are working things out." He drained his coffee before calling to the waitress to come and refill his cup. "Keiko and I aren't on great terms but she's forgiven me for my dirty mouth."
"She always will, Yuu-chan. You just need to tell her the truth once in a while. Tell her how you really feel. Don't worry, you don't have to do it in front of anyone else but it would be nice for her to hear how you feel." She thanked the waitress for the refills before adding a bit more cream and sugar to her cup.
"I dunno, B. I hate the whole 'romance' theme. Keiko's my girl and all but I'm not comfortable with feelings." Hiding a snicker, Botan secretly rolled her eyes. Yuusuke was one of the most emotional men on the planet. Though, the only time it showed was through pure tragedy. Plus, Keiko was madly in love with Yuusuke. The young girl hadn't even looked at another man the night they went out.
"You'll get over it. How else do you plan on proposing?" He nearly choked on his coffee. The deity's laughter rang with mirth as she pointed to the blushing boy across from her.
"Botan! That wasn't funny!" He snapped, wiping some of the coffee from his shirt. "You're seriously just as twisted as that lover of yours." Botan's laughter ceased and her face burned red with embarrassment.
"Shut up, womanizer." She shot back. "At least I respect my boyfriend."
"I don't have a boyfriend!" He hollered.
"You won't have a girlfriend for long if you don't make some sort of commitment to her!" It almost felt like she was pleading with him to confess his feelings to Keiko. "I don't want anything to happen to you two. Please, Yuusuke-chan, just once tell her. If she reacts badly then you never have to say it again."
"You'll get off my case?" The detective gave her a glare and watched as she held out her pinky finger. He held out his own and they promised. "I feel stupid doing this..."
"Well, I can't kiss you to seal a promise...and shaking hands is so..." He chuckled.
"I don't see why you can't kiss me..." Her face lit up bright red and she nearly slapped him. "Just kidding, B. You know you're my best girl." She felt her flush fade a bit as she grinned.
"And you're my best man." Yuusuke winked.
"You bet!" He looked out the window. "What time is it, anyway?" Botan looked down at her watch and gasped.
"Oh, goodness! I'm going to be late meeting Koenma-sama!" She stood up and bid goodbye to Yuusuke as she slammed some money on the table and left. He watched her leave with a small smile on his face. At least they had each other to fall back on.
Botan sped on her oar to her meeting with Koenma. She knew that she would probably be put back on duty for a while. He hadn't seemed too happy about calling her in. When she arrived, the ferry girl instantly weaved her way to her boss's office.
"What did you wish to see me for, Koenma-sama?" He looked up from the papers on his desk, rubbing his temples.
"I've got so much to do. Everyone has their jobs to deal with and... I just want to scream!" His face got so red that she almost thought that all of the blood in his body rushed to it... But she merely realized that he was about to throw a tantrum if she didn't help him out.
"What did you need?" He picked up a small stack of folders and handed them over to her. "Is this all?"
"There's more in your office." Suppressing a groan, the ferry girl knew that she wouldn't be getting home for a while. "Oh, and, before I forget... I'll need the boys up here immediately. They need to play detective and see if they can find anything suspicious in the eastern Makai."
"East? Koenma-sama... I am supposed to go with them, right?" He pointed to the door. Hanging her head, Botan walked out. "You can contact them yourself, then!" Upon finding her office, the ferry girl opened the door and nearly dropped the files in her hands. "I swear that when I get out of this office...someone is going to die!" She slammed it shut and walked over to the desk, with quite a bit of difficulty. Time for some work.
That's the last time I take personal days...
XXX
Even the guys were finished before she was! That was the biggest outrage to Botan that there was. She was getting so irritated that she wasn't even half-way done with her work twelve hours after she started. Her back was sore and her vision was getting blurry. George came in to retrieve the work she had finished and gave her a sympathetic look.
"Here, Botan. I figured you would need this." He handed her a large mug of coffee and took a large stack in his hands. "I'll give this to Koenma-sama."
"Thank you, George."
Hours later, she got the living daylights scared out of her. Courtesy to her boyfriend. He sent her a telepathic message.
What are you doing, onna? When will you be back?
I don't know, Hiei! I have a ton of work to do and I started before you guys went on that mission...
Stupid toddler. I'll fix his-
Don't you dare! I'll be home tomorrow night at the latest, okay?
There was no answer. She should've figured that he would get pissed off that she had work to do. It was her job as a ferry girl to complete the tasks given to her. Even if she was just as pissed off as Hiei was.
"Botan, there's a soul you need to retrieve." An ogre stated as he entered to the workload that was finished. She gave him a glare that would almost match Hiei's before storming out of her office. The ferry girl pulled out her little black book and angrily paged through it. Ayame briefed her so she simply put the book away.
XXX
She made it home at the time she said she would but she instantly dropped into bed. Hiei was already asleep on the couch, having gotten bored waiting up for her. She had put a blanket over him and went to her room. The tired ferry girl had barely even been able to change into her pajamas before she hit the bed and fell asleep.
The delicious smell of breakfast foods woke Botan from her sound slumber. The thing that alarmed her was that Hiei couldn't cook to save his life. So...if he was cooking that meant that he could've set something on fire. She climbed out of bed and rubbed her eyes as she walked from her room to investigate. To her surprise, it wasn't Hiei that was cooking in the kitchen.
"K-Kurama?" Hiei was standing at the counter, chopping something up while Kurama stood at the stove. "What is going on?" The two demons looked over at her. The kitsune flushed and looked away while Hiei scowled darkly.
"Go put some clothes on, onna." She looked down and noticed that she was only in a tank top and shorts. She put her hands on her hips.
"I do have clothes on, for your information. I want to know what you're doing!" The koorime gave her an angry expression before walking over to her and shoving her into the living room. Then he proceeded to shove her into her bedroom.
"We are cooking breakfast. The kitsune was bored so I invited him over. He is a better cook so he decided to make breakfast." She sighed before turning around and gathering some clothes into her arms.
"Thanks..." On her way to the door, she placed a gentle kiss on his lips and went to get a shower.
They had everything ready and on the table by the time she got out, wearing a white skirt and a short-sleeved blue shirt. She took a seat at the table and looked at the food, her mouth nearly watering.
"It looks delicious! I'm not sure if I want to eat it..." Hiei raised a brow at her statement but Kurama thanked her for the compliment. "I haven't had a meal like this cooked for me in a while..." She ate to her heart's content and talked and laughed with the demons at the table. Of course, Hiei didn't laugh but provided a smirk where necessary.
"What did Koenma want from you?" Botan stiffened at the mention of her boss. "You were gone for a few days..."
"My workload was terrible and he gave me at least half of his own, too." Hiei's mood suddenly dropped. "I have to go up at least once every two days." The ferry girl poured herself another glass of orange juice.
"He only calls you when he can't handle his work." The koorime looked pissed off. "I want to go up there and-" She sent him a look that told him to shut it about the subject.
"What was it that you guys had to do? I kind of figured that there wasn't much going on in the east. Was there a complaint or something?" Kurama smiled before sipping his tea.
"Of course there was. But it was a wasted effort. There was nothing." The kitsune chuckled. "Koenma did look really flustered when he told us to go down to Makai. But the ruins only had the usual drunkards and vagabonds. Nothing unusual. But I filled out the report for him and that was the end of that case." They were all silent for a few minutes.
"So, is there anything new that you want to share, Kurama-kun?" Botan asked quietly. She felt bad for the way they kept parting so she kind of wanted to make up for it.
"Not really, Botan-chan. I was thinking the other day though, that it would be nice if we all had another get-together. Perhaps we could go camping or something like that. My okaasan told me about a place where she's going in a few weeks. She asked if I wanted to come." The ferry girl had a large grin on her face.
"I would love to! We'll have to talk to the others. Hiei, can we go?" She looked pleadingly over at the koorime. He raised a brow at Kurama before nodding his head slowly. Botan got up and hugged him in excitement. "Yay! Thank you!"
"I'll call you tomorrow to iron out the details. Since you're going, it should be easy to get the girls to go, which means that the other guys will have no trouble following." He stood up. "It's too bad but I have to leave. I have something planned for today." She escorted him to the living room.
"Thank you so much for breakfast. Not to mention inviting us next week. You've been such a great friend throughout this." He was surprised at her words. Then, when she hugged him, he couldn't help but return it.
"How could I not be, Botan? You have always been there for me and so has Hiei. But...I should go or else I'll be late." She bid him good bye as they parted and closed the door after he left. It was silent in the apartment for a moment before she heard dishes rattling.
"Hiei, what are you doing?" She ran out into the kitchen to see him cleaning up the table. He gave her a look that said 'what does it look like' before continuing on with what he was doing. All of the stuff had been put away and all that was left on the table was a couple of dishes that he couldn't get. "Do you wanna rinse?" With a shrug as his answer, they began doing the sink full of dishes together.
Later on the evening, Botan was folding clothes from doing the laundry while Hiei was showering after his afternoon training. She smiled and took the basket into her room, putting her clothes away before venturing into his room. She placed his clothes in his drawers and closet, smiling as she looked at the fresh sheets that she had put on the bed. Not that he slept in there anyway... A furious blush erupted on her face so she darted from the room and went to her bedroom to get comfortable for the night. She put on a tank top and a pair of cut off sweat pants that were short enough to be called shorts.
"Baka onna." She whirled around and noticed the koorime in the doorway. "Are you already going to bed?" He was wearing black lounge pants and had a towel draped over his shoulders. His chest was bare.
"I probably should. I am a little worn out. Do you think that maybe...we could just lie together? It'll help me fall asleep." He watched as she got into the bed. He disappeared, turning everything off and locking the door before he ventured back into the room. He threw the towel in the hamper then joined her in bed. He pulled her to him, resting easily with her at his side. "Thank you." She leaned up, giving him a quick good night kiss. As she snuggled deeper into his chest, she let the words slip from her mouth. "I love you..." He merely kissed her on the top of her head.
"Botan." She sighed and fell asleep, content in his arms.
XXX
OMG! I am so sorry for the lack of updates! Things are getting tough nowadays. Next week will be even harder... I'll try to get the next chapter up soon. I hope it won't be another month. I feel so bad but writer's block and a hectic schedule don't really mix well.
Thank you all for reviewing and I hope that I'm at least keeping this interesting for you. Please let me know how I'm doing!
-Angel