Always By Your Side

(This story is disclaimed.)

((Summary: HieixBotan fic! Another one! Botan is attacked by a demon that broke into the Reikai, and with all the others on Rekai Tantei duty, Hiei is the only one to be her bodyguard. What happens when Botan begins to fall for her sweet savior?))

Chapter One: No One There

(Botan’s POV)

I lay in the dark, staring at the ceiling, an odd look on my face. It seemed as if sleep just refused to claim me, due to a suspicious paranoia lurking in my soul. I sat up, feeling a cold breeze emitting from my window as I did so. Perhaps it was that that was placing the sharp fear in my mind. I just kept feeling as if I was being watched, stalked by an unknown person- or demon for that matter. I let out a sigh, getting up and closing my window.

Creeeeaaaak.

I looked around. I was defiantely apprehensive tonight. It was just that I was getting a bad vibe from the entire surroundings. That lingering feeling of someone watching me still remained. I took a step away from my window. No sound. Carefully, quietly, slowly, I moved backwards, all the way to my bed where I proceeded to lay down once again. I glanced at the clock on my dresser. Two forty-one and counting. Yup, tomorrow was going to be a long day. A long day indeed.

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE-

My hand slammed down on my alarm clock, feeling exhaustion washing over me. It was five a.m., and I had to get ready for school. I dressed slowly, barely picking up my pace as I moved out the door towards Saryaski Junior High School. It came to mind that I could just skip school. I wasn’t there most of the time anyway, but Koenma insisted that I stay human for the time I was here and that I follow Yusuke and his friends around to make sure they stayed out of trouble. Some job. I tried to amuse myself by swinging my dark bag back and forth, watching it go, but feeling as if it didn’t matter. I swayed a bit and shook my head, moving toward the gates of the dreaded place of education, or ‘halls of doom’ as Kuwabara so vividly put it.

“Well,” I muttered to myself, hoping to get a bit encouraged. “Here goes...”

(Hiei’s POV)

“Hmm,” I thought, watching over the city. “Everything seems too quiet. I don’t like it. There’s something in the air... I just can’t figure out what.”

I removed the scarf from my jagan, scanning the area for anything suspicious. Nothing. I shrugged and jumped back down into my tree- at least, it was my tree at the moment. I began to watch people walk by in the park. They were so happy, laughing and carrying on. It got on my nerves. Happy people always got on my nerves. What did they have to be so happy about anyway? According to my logic, happiness wasn’t needed because all it would do was upset you when cold, hard reality hit you in the face. Still, it seemed as if something bad was going to happen, a strange uneasiness migrating over me. Either way, it didn’t matter to me- at least I told myself that- so I leaned back and decided to take a small nap.

(Botan’s POV)

Yawn. Class was boring, as usual. Normally, I would be so perky and happy just to be there, but not today. I was exhausted, and still slightly spooked from the night before. I probably wouldn’t get much sleep tonight either. My compact began to beep. I sighed, opening it.

“Yes?” I asked, trying to sound as animated as usual.

“Botan? Could you come up to the Reikai real quick? I have a few things to be transported.”

“Sure, no problem, Koenma-sama!” I said, smiling fakely.

(Koenma’s POV)

“Ah, Botan, there you are!” I said, looking up from my thousands of papers. “I need you to send a mission to Yusuke.”

“Just Yusuke?” she asked.

“Well, Kurama, Kuwabara, and maybe Hiei might come along too.”

“Sir, I had to BRIBE Hiei the last few times.” Botan sounded unconvinced that Hiei would actually come along again.

To be honest, I didn’t want him to come. Any more bribes, and he would be free to roam everywhere. I could let that happen. I sighed.

“Fine. Alert Yusuke, Kurama, and Kuwabara. That’s it.”

“Yes, Koenma-sama.” She bowed.

God, she looked tired, but that was her fault. I couldn’t let her take off work just because we were friends. She was my best ferry girl, for crying out loud! I shook my head and went back to stamping those awful papers.

(Botan’s POV)

“WHAT? Another one?! Aww... no fa-ha-hair!” Yusuke whined.

“Yusuke, this is our job, we have to do this,” Kurama insisted.

“Yeah, c’mon Urameshi! Let’s beat these punks!” Kuwabara exclaimed, in his normal, obnoxious voice.

“Botan, you look tired. We’ll go on the mission by ourselves. You should rest.” Kurama smiled at me.

“Thanks, but-”

“Yeah, go ahead, Botan, we can handle this on our own,” Kuwabara said, trying to sound like some hero.

“Not as long as you’re with us,” Yusuke retorted.

“SHUT UP URAMESHI!”

“Only tellin’ the truth,” Yusuke said in a sing-song voice.

Kurama waved me off then tended to Yusuke and Kuwabara’s arugment, trying desperately to shut them up. They were too nice. But I was glad they were. I began to climb my apartment steps, shoving the key into the lock, and entering my living room where I proceeded to collapse on my couch to watch daytime talkshows and such. My phone rang. I reached over and grasped the receiver, holding it to my ear.

“Hello?”

Nothing.

Breathing.

“H-hello?” I repeated.

Click.

“EEEEEK! A STALKER!”

I slammed the phone back upon the receiver, feeling my heart hammering through my ribs. It seemed as if my mind could not accept that it might have just been a phone problem or a wrong number- that seemed to obvious at the moment. Perhaps it was because of the still growing uneasiness that seemed to rip through her at every waking moment. That anxiety in which you could see something out of the corner of your eye, turn, and see nothing there. That morbid feeling that you would get, just knowing someone was watching you, but having no proof. I shook my head, something I did more often than usual, when something raced past my window.

I gasped and raced to my window, throwing it open in my fear, my eyes dashing around the area, trying to make out anything that might be threatening. My pulse was growing all the more wild in the silence. I didn’t like the fact that I might possibly be a target of something. But why would I be the target when Yusuke was the leader? I wasn’t strong enough to be threatenting. Sure, I could swing an oar or a baseball bat pretty hard, but other than that, I really shouldn’t have had anything to worry about.

But I did.

(A/N: Yay! I have a feeling this will be my best H/B fic yet. It’s coming out really great so far. Hope you guys like! By the way, “Teach Me,” my site, will be on hiatus until I can fix up the layout and stuff. Still, I want submissions. I also want to say that if you are submitting me fanart or fanfics, please, PLEASE send a URL, because I don’t want to kill my compy with an unknown virus.

Let’s all give a round of applause to Jasmin, too! She’s helped me soooo much, I want to mention her. She rocks! Lol. The next chapter will be up soon... I hope... evil school. ;) )