I remember when it was just me and two other people writing Hiei/Botan fictions. It was a lot less complicated back then.

Title: Playing with Fire

Summary: He reminds her of fire. He thinks she doesn’t know how right she is.

Rating: PG. Don’t expect this rating for very long.

Cookies: I blame all the horrible, indecent Hiei/Botan Fic’s out there. Including this one.

---

It was cold.

The forest darkened in continuum every one hundred seconds, but the moon hadn’t risen yet. The leaves on the tree’s were dark and green, and made rustling noises in the wind that accompanied the coming night. Her back pressed tightly against the rough mixture of gray and umber bark of the tree, as the girl strained to find some decent form of warmth. Her ripped cherry colored dress doesn’t do much to protect her, and she draws her knees closer to her chest, thinking that maybe this will all end and she’ll be safe again. But then again, she thinks it won’t, and shivers as she shuts her eyes.

She doesn’t know where she is, or how she got there. The ground is hard, and she is constantly patting down her mussed dress to keep the dirt off. There isn’t much grass, but many weeds in little patches near the tree’s. All dried up, and dead looking, like most of the things in the forest looked. She looked at her shoes to avoid looking at anything else. They were dirty, and one of the laces was undone.

Her cerulean hair draped across her forehead and her shoulders, the ends curling up in girlish locks. She pushed them back and stood up, walking over to a gab in the brush which led to a clearing. Her arms folded across her chest, as childish eyes looked up to the ever clouded sky. She shuddered once again.

How had it gotten so cold?

The forest was usually a warm place; A little spooky and dark, but always rustling in the midst's of a midsummer’s breeze, even in autumn it didn’t get as cold as it was now. It was the twenty-first day into September, but that was no excuse.

But thoughts of the peculiar weather would soon be discarded, as she found herself alone to her thoughts, now standing in the middle of the clearing she’d entered.

But she’d heard a noise. Turning around slowly, the girl would come face to face with a strangely attired boy. He looked about her age, but his clothes were far more tattered than hers, and he had dried blood in trickles on both arms. What was left of his clothes consisted of a black sleeveless shirt, and black pants. Both seemed old fashioned, and rather faded, but what caught her attention most was his eyes.

They were a very dark red color, and she thought that his eyes might’ve also been bleeding. That seemed rather likely, considering his condition.

He was sloughed slightly, holding his elbow in one of his hands, and his head was craned up to look at her with his dark, narrowed eyes. She hesitated, but reached out for him.

“A-ah... Are you ok?” She didn’t realize what a self explanatory question that was, because she was still a child. He was wearing the guise of what seemed to be a child, but he wouldn’t show it. He mumbled something in the arrogant tone that she supposed was ‘ go away’, but didn’t listen. As he moved to go around her, she stubbornly moved to block him. He glared. She huffed. Finally, he relented, but not before giving a quick glance behind himself back at the trees. They were dark, and mysterious, and he didn’t want to go back to them. They were still chasing him.

“You’re hurt..” Her voice made him tense, and he turned back to her with a glower set upon his face.

“I’m okay.”

“No you’re not. You’re hurt.” She was defiant, and he didn’t like the harsh color of pink her eyes were showing. He shrugged her off, and scooted back. She scooted forward, and ripped of a piece of her dress. His cheeks turned pink, and he looked away out of habit. He didn’t want her to hit him by looking like they did. But he’d never meant to look.

“Turn around.” She commanded. He glared, his gaze fixing on anything but her.

“No.”

“I’m going to help you, dumby.”

“You.. You were getting undressed.” He wrinkled his nose, rubbing away the color in his cheeks.

“No I WASN’T.” She was now blushing, as she walked over in front of him to dangle the fabric. He blinked, and glared.

“No.” He said before she’d had a chance to explain.

“B-but!”

“I’m fine. I’m not bleeding anymore.”

“But you smell. Like blood. Blood doesn’t smell good.”

What was wrong with this girl? Standing up, the boy took the cloth, growling low in his throat before beginning to rub it against the dried red stains n his arms. She smiled happily, reaching out her hand. He eyes it wearily, having now successfully wrapped the bit of cloth around his arm, pulling it tightly with his teeth.

“I’m Botan.” She gave him a closed smile, and he looked away with uncertainty.

“I’m-”

“THERE HE IS! GET HIM!” The boy froze, displaying for the first time in the few moments that she’d known him an emotion. He was petrified. Swiftly turning heel, he’d look towards the edge of the forest, letting out a curse that made her blush. But she to was getting scared, and brought her fists to her face nervously, watching as he turned to look at her, as if deciding on something. He grabbed her hand, and began to run to the other side of the clearing, opposite of where he’d come from, but back into where she’d emerged.

“Where are we going?”

“A place.”

She let him lead her quietly, ducking low branches that seemed like bony appendages reaching out to grab them; Dodging reappearing boulders and brush that popped out at them; and jumping over anything he’d suspect would make a noise beneath their feet.

She heard footsteps behind her, but she didn’t know who they were. She didn’t know anything. She could barely remember what had happened before she’d ended up in the forest. She turned to face the back of the boy in front of her, and hesitantly whispered something to him.

“Are you my friend?”

The question took him by surprise, and he turned to give her an annoyed look, before shrugging. He didn’t know, but it intrigued him slightly.

“Is a friend a nice thing to have?” She was surprised at his answer to her question with another question, and bit her lip before giving him a sad smile.

“Yes.” He was quiet for a few moments, before slowing down, and turning to give her the barest ghost of a smile.

“Yes.”

But she didn’t smile back. There was a shadow behind him. It was big, and tall, and to dark to identify if a girl or boy. But she whimpered, and backed away a step. Later on, looking back at this, she’d call herself a coward.

Hiei froze at her sudden aura change. She was frightened, and he suddenly felt the presence of someone behind him. And saw someone behind her.

“Botan..” He turned around for a moment, glaring at the person, before turning back to her.

“Run.”

And it had all gone black.

---

Botan woke up, her forehead drenched and sweaty, and her body cold. Hazily, her eyes opened to grasp the familiar surroundings- the one’s from her present, and not from her past. Unknowingly, her hands were fisted into the pink comforter, and she slowly drew her legs across the bed and onto the floor with a sigh of relief.

“Dream..” She mumbled it in faint disbelief, and uncertainty, even thought that was what it in fact had been. She’d never be sure of whether or not it was that or a memory. She felt a shiver run down her spine, as she recollected it, the palms of her hands running up and down the side of her arms.

She was suddenly very cold, and it was only the twenty first day into September.

---

I live off reviews. The more you give me, the faster these chapters are posted.

...

I’m such a greedy jerk.