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November 15, 1997
“Though it’s only been a month or so…that old car’s begging us to go! We gotta get away and get back on the road again!”
That was yet another thing Kurama loved about his new wife. Botan sang along with the radio, and belted the words out as if she’d written the songs herself. He hummed along with her, while Hiei sulked in the backseat. It was his birthday in a few days, and Kurama and Botan’s present to him was a ticket to a swordsmanship expo quite a few miles from where they lived in Mushiyori City, Japan. But Kurama was willing to bet that Hiei wished he’d just asked them to bring a sword back for him instead. He was scowling as Botan headed into the refrain:
“Me and you and a dog named Boo!” she sang. “Travelin’ and a-livin’ off the land! (Come on, sing it, Hiei!) Me and you and a dog named Boo! How I love being a free—ouch!”
The song kept playing, but the cheery morning was interrupted by Botan’s sudden shriek of pain.
“Is everything all right?” said Kurama, turning to look at her.
“Yes,” she said, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. “My stomach just hurts a little bit, that’s all.”
“It was probably the sausages we had for breakfast,” Hiei suggested. “Normally I like human food, but those things were just gross.”
“Maybe,” said Botan, but she looked doubtful. She didn’t sing along with the rest of the song, or with the one that came on next. And about a half an hour later, when they were coming up on a gas station, she said, “Kurama, honey, can we stop?”
“Of course,” said Kurama, concerned. They pulled over, and she ran for the bathroom.
“What’s her problem?” Hiei asked.
“It’s probably indigestion, like you said,” Kurama replied. “I’ve got to admit, I don’t feel at my best, either. I know how she feels, though. It’s difficult to get used to being in a human body.”
Shortly before she and Kurama became engaged, Botan decided to at least take a break from her job as a Reaper. There was no longer any need to have a Spirit Detective, so the “assistant” position didn’t even exist anymore, but she’d seemed excited to settle into family life—she would, after all, need to be human to have children. Now they had been married for a year. Being in a human body full-time, as opposed to intermittently like before, was something she was still getting used to. She had gained about ten or fifteen pounds, and complained of headaches and backaches sometimes.
After a couple of minutes, Botan came out of the restroom, looking tired and a little frustrated. Kurama went out to meet her and left Hiei in the car, in case it was something she might not want to talk about in front of him. He was right.
“What’s the matter?” Kurama asked.
“It wasn’t the sausages,” Botan said. “I started my period. I haven’t had it in a couple months.”
“Well, at least it wasn’t anything serious.”
“I know, but it’s at the worst possible time,” Botan explained. “I wanted to just have fun. Now I’m going to have to spend the entire road trip in pain.”
“I’ll get tea leaves for you as soon as I can,” Kurama promised. “And until then, I always carry painkillers in my glove box. You won’t have to spend the trip in pain.”
“Thanks, honey,” she said, and he was relieved when she smiled. “Painkillers and your raspberry tea usually do the trick. Being in a human body really does take sacrifices, though, doesn’t it?”
“Nicely put.” Kurama kissed his wife and guided her back to the car. Botan took two of the painkillers, and they kept driving.
Botan’s biggest adjustment to being human was something Kurama never had to deal with himself. After a few months of being permanently (or at least semi-permanently) human, she’d started getting periods, but they were still sporadic and light enough that she never needed any sort of feminine product. It was normal for her to go a few months without having one. He figured her new body wasn’t reliably ovulating yet and they’d need to wait at least another year before they could start a family. And that, along with the fact that they wouldn’t mind if she did get pregnant, was why Kurama and Botan had stopped using condoms shortly after they got married. If she got pregnant, they’d be happy. If she didn’t, well, they had time. But until then, “that time of the month” was a little difficult on her, and he tried to do what he could to make it easier.
As the day went on, though, it was clear the painkillers weren’t working. Botan didn’t say anything, but Kurama could tell she was in pain. Hiei seemed to be able to tell, too, because even he asked her what was wrong—whilst pretending he didn’t care, of course.
“Girl problems,” said Botan miserably.
“Oh,” said Hiei, and he didn’t say anything more.
By eight that evening, when it was dark, Botan was clearly at the end of her tether, and wanted no dinner.
“Please, let’s just stop,” she begged, her hands on her abdomen. “I need to sleep this off.”
“But we’re in the middle of nowhere,” Kurama pointed out. Of course, he was concerned about her, but the remote stretch of road they were driving on was little more than a dirt path, surrounded by trees, without—besides the road itself—any signs of civilization at all.
“The next gas station isn’t too far off,” said Hiei, gesturing to his Jagan eye. “I’m kind of tired, too. We can sleep in the car.”
“All right,” said Kurama. “We can do that. And maybe at the convenience store, they’ll have some medicine that’s a little stronger for you, Botan.”
They made it to the gas station all right, but when Botan stood up and got out of the car, she winced.
“I…I think I’m going to need some feminine products this time,” she said, looking both horrified and embarrassed at the bloody liquid now on the back of her dress and on the car seat. “Oh, God, I’m so sorry!”
She looked like she was about to cry, so Kurama went around and put his arms around her.
“It’s all right,” he said, trying to sound reassuring. “You know women are wondrously made.” He paused to give her a kiss. “I can fix this. Just wait with Hiei, and I’ll go and get you some ‘supplies’ at the convenience store.”
Unfortunately, there was a not-so-small problem. Not only did there not appear to be a working bathroom at this place, but the convenience store was also closed. There was no one inside, and when he looked closer, it didn’t seem like there had been for at least a couple of years. Of course, Kurama thought. Why would anyone need a convenience store in a place as remote as this? The only thing for it, he decided, since there were no more painkillers and they didn’t have any feminine products, was to drive to the nearest open convenience store, pick up what he needed there, and drive back. He explained this plan to Botan and Hiei when he got back to the car. They obviously weren’t very happy about it, but they seemed to realize there wasn’t another option.
“The nearest convenience store is…” Hiei lifted up his headband and closed his regular two eyes, while the third one opened. “Maybe twenty minutes away. Keep driving straight until you see the fork in the road, then go left, and it will be on your right. The convenience store is open. I can see a guy behind the counter and a few customers.”
“Okay,” said Kurama. “Thank you, Hiei. Botan, honey, hang in there.”
With that, Hiei got out of the car and stood next to Botan. Kurama got back in and peeled out.
…
“I’m so sorry, Hiei,” Botan said again, walking over to the curb and sitting down. “I didn’t mean to inconvenience you two like this.”
Hiei grunted and sat down next to her.
“I swear it’s never been this heavy before.” Botan groaned and pressed her hands to her abdomen. “Or this painful!”
“Kurama will be back with what you need soon.” Hiei didn’t know what else to say.
“Not soon enough! Ohhh, you’re so lucky this doesn’t happen to you, Hiei!”
Hiei was a little worried for her then, but after ten minutes had passed and she seemed to be getting worse and worse, he found himself legitimately concerned. Even if they weren’t exactly close, he didn’t want to see her in so much pain.
“Is there…is there anything I can do?” he asked jerkily.
“N-No!” Botan had tears running down her cheeks, and Hiei jumped when she let out a loud howl of pain. “Hiei, this—this isn’t normal! Something’s wrong with me! Call for help!”
“I don’t have any money,” said Hiei, looking at the payphone across the street.
“Use your communication mirror!”
“Mine’s broke,” said Hiei. “Use yours.”
“I left it in the car!” Botan moaned. “Hiei…!”
Hiei was male, he was single, and he had been raised by men, so this wasn’t exactly his forte. But even he knew this wasn’t normal. It certainly wasn’t normal for her. If it was, she wouldn’t be panicking like this.
“Maybe it’s not your time of the month,” he suggested helplessly. “Maybe you have a kidney stone or appendicitis or something.”
“Then why am I bleeding?!”
“I-I don’t know.” Hiei’s heart was pounding. “You’re sure it’s coming from your…?”
“YES!” she screeched.
Hiei used his Jagan eye to try to find Kurama. Unfortunately, he was already pushing a grocery cart down the aisles of the convenience store, looking for what he needed. It would be at least twenty long minutes until he got back.
“Just…just try to stay calm,” said Hiei. “Kurama will be back soon. He’ll know what to do. Wasn’t he a healer before he became a bandit?”
“Mm-hmm.” Botan gave a small nod, her eyes squeezed shut as tears still leaked out of them. She was now rocking back and forth, her hands held tight over her abdomen as if to shield it from the pain. It was amazing how much Hiei wanted to help her at that moment. She was his best friend’s wife, after all, and an individual, so however much she had annoyed him in the past, he knew he had to help her now. But how could he possibly help her when he didn’t even know what was wrong? He would have used his superior speed to race to the store and bring Kurama back, but he couldn’t leave Botan alone. And even if he did, Kurama would still take twenty minutes to come back. Botan could be dead by then. No, Hiei decided, he was going to have to take care of this problem himself.
“I’m going to break into the convenience store,” Hiei declared, standing up. “Maybe their phone is still working, and we can call for an ambulance.” Demons didn’t have ambulances, but Hiei knew about them from TV. He even knew the right number to call.
“Okay,” said Botan weakly.
“Stay where you are,” Hiei instructed, and headed to the convenience store. When he reached the door, he summoned a flame and began to use it like a blowtorch, slowly dissolving the glass.
“HIEI!” Botan suddenly screamed from across the parking lot. “HELP!”
“I’m trying!” said Hiei, pressing his whole hand against the window. He was making progress.
“HIEI!” she screeched again.
Abandoning his attempt to break into the convenience store, Hiei was on the other side of the parking lot in less than a second. “What is it? What’s the matter?”
“I think something’s coming out of me!” Botan cried, her eyes now wide with terror.
“L-Like what?” Hiei stammered. There was more blood on the concrete now.
“I don’t know!” Botan wailed, but her voice soon escalated to another scream. It was the most horrible scream Hiei had ever heard, far worse than any that had pierced the air when he sliced through his latest victim.
“Some…some female thing?” Hiei said desperately.
“I DON’T KNOW!” she repeated, but she was crying and screaming at the same time. “Oh, Hiei, it hurts! I’m going to die! It’s probably a cyst or a tumor or something and oh my God, I’m going to die!”
“No, you’re not!” Hiei realized there were tears in his eyes too as he gripped her shoulders. “Just stay with me!”
“Hiei,” she sobbed, holding out her hand, and he clutched it, feeling awful. He didn’t believe it for a second when he told her she wasn’t going to die. She didn’t appear to be bleeding out, exactly, but what was it Kurama said about pain? That it was a strength, not a weakness, because it was there to tell you when something was wrong? Well, something was wrong, all right.
“It’s okay,” said Hiei. One of his hands was still entwined with Botan’s, the other gripping the curb so tight that his knuckles were white. “You’ll be okay.”
Kurama, where the hell are you? Hiei thought to himself, as Botan screamed again. He was afraid she would blow her vocal cords out.
“Listen to me, Hiei,” she panted, her eyes pleading. “This is going to sound awkward, but…can you…can you…you know…?” She pointed helplessly between her legs.
“No,” said Hiei, mortified. He didn’t know what Botan was asking him to do, exactly, but if it involved a certain part of her that he wasn’t allowed to see, and had no desire to see, the answer was a definitive no.
“Just look,” she begged. “Tell me what it is. Please, Hiei!”
Hiei swallowed as Botan pulled off her blood-soaked underwear. It was a good thing she was wearing a dress and not pants.
“Fine,” he said, and went to kneel in front of her. “Um…okay, lean back and lift your skirt.”
It felt incredibly wrong for Hiei to ask Kurama’s wife to lift her skirt for him when he knew she was naked underneath it. But it was what she had asked him to do. And he forgot all about any awkwardness when she parted her legs.
“Holy shit!” Hiei yelped, falling backwards onto the concrete. “Botan!”
“What?!” she cried. “What? What is it?”
Hiei couldn’t speak. It was a head—a head of soaking-wet red hair. Reality hit him all at once. Botan was in so much pain because she was having a baby. Right here in the parking lot of a closed convenience store in the middle of nowhere, without her husband around. Great! Just great!
“You didn’t tell me you were pregnant.” Hiei’s voice was raspy, like he hadn’t had anything to drink in days.
“I’m not pregnant!” Botan shrieked.
“Yes, you are! You’re in labor!” Hiei stared in horror at the baby literally being born in front of his very eyes. This could not be happening. “And you’re going to be a widow before this road trip is over, too!”
“How can I be in labor?” Botan wailed. “I had my period! I never felt it moving! I didn’t—”
“Okay, okay, just stop!” said Hiei, trying frantically to think of what to do. What could he do? The baby was almost out already!
“No, baby, you stay where you are,” Botan moaned, leaning back on her hands, sweat pouring down her temples. “We need to wait for Daddy…”
“Isn’t it a bit late for that?” said Hiei hoarsely. “I saw its fucking head!”
“Oh, you’re right, Hiei, you’re right!” Botan’s body was clearly going to make her push, whether she wanted to or not.
Hiei tried to put away his panic and think logically. Babies were born every day, weren’t they? If countless demons and humans could do it since the beginning of time, why couldn’t Botan? And yet, she was clearly panicked, only finding out minutes before that motherhood was imminent. Hiei didn’t know how it worked with humans, but demons tended to give birth fairly uneventfully, wherever they felt comfortable. Sometimes there was someone with medical knowledge on hand, usually a partner or family member, but oftentimes, especially if they were nomadic, they’d just go off and deliver the baby on their own, in the woods or a pond or a field somewhere. Maybe one of Botan’s problems right now was that she wasn’t in a place where she felt comfortable. And that was when Hiei realized what he could do for her. He couldn’t take her pain away, but he could ease it.
With that in mind, Hiei lifted Botan up by her armpits, then summoned heat energy to make his hands nice and warm. He pressed them onto her back, like a heating pad, and she gasped at the touch.
“Hey, Botan,” he said, rubbing her back. “Do you remember your wedding day?”
“W-What?” she sniffed.
“Remember the long white dress you wore?” he continued. “Kurama in his tuxedo? My horrible attempt at a toast? Remember the way you two danced at the reception, like there was nobody else in the world?”
“Mm-hmm,” she said finally. Hiei noticed she was clenching her fists, so he grabbed one of her hands again. “He smelled like roses.”
“Yes, exactly,” said Hiei, relieved. Could it be that she was actually coming around? “You remember how his arms felt around you, don’t you?”
“Of course,” she sighed. “Loving. Calm. Safe…”
“Well, you’re safe with me, too,” said Hiei. “Maybe you didn’t know you were having this baby. And I know it hurts. But we’re going to get through this together. I promise. By the way…your baby has red hair.”
“Really?” Botan sort of sob-laughed, and then she was clutching both of Hiei’s hands in hers, throwing her head back. “Oh, God, Hiei, it’s coming, it’s coming!”
“Good!” said Hiei. Even though he was still terrified on the inside, he was using every last particle of acting ability he had to pretend he was calm and collected. “Go ahead and push it out.”
Botan had an awfully strong grip, Hiei observed, the way she clung to him, rested her entire weight on him, using his body as leverage as she brought her baby into the world. He wished she wouldn’t scream like that, but at least she was doing this. Hiei didn’t know where to look—her face, or towards the ground, so that the baby wouldn’t land on the concrete and bump its head.
“Ch-Check on it?” Botan gasped between pushes. Hiei nodded, and gasped at what he saw. She had made progress. He could see the baby’s whole face—ears, eyes, nose, everything but its little chin, and that came out on the next push. It seemed only seconds later that the rest of the baby slipped out, and Hiei instinctively dived for it, the little wet body landing safely in his arms, still attached to Botan by the cord.
“Congratulations,” he said, his entire body soaked in sweat, as he set the baby in Botan’s arms. “You’ve got a little girl.”
For just a moment, everything seemed okay. Botan wasn’t really bleeding anymore, her life energy felt fine, and the baby was out. But then they both seemed to notice the problem at the same time.
“Isn’t she…isn’t she supposed to cry?” Botan breathed. Tears were streaming down her cheeks.
“I-I think so,” said Hiei, but she wasn’t. She was still; her body was pale, and her face appeared to be almost blue.
“Oh no!” Botan’s face crumpled, and she started to full-on cry. Hiei felt as if his blood had turned to ice as Botan kept repeating the same two words: She’s dead, she’s dead…
“She’s not dead,” said Hiei, because he could feel a slight amount of life energy emanating from the baby’s body. But it was far too little for a healthy baby, he knew. And she wasn’t breathing, so surely she wouldn’t be alive for long.
“I’m sorry, baby,” Botan wailed, holding the baby close to her chest, the front of her dress now stained with blood. Hiei could only stare: at the baby, at Botan, and then back at the baby again. She was still attached to Botan by the cord. Hiei wasn’t really sure if he was supposed to cut it or just leave it, but since he had no earthly idea how to do the former, he just left it the way it was. He would have said nothing could be worse than Botan delivering a baby she didn’t know she was carrying in a parking lot, but he was wrong. This was.
“C’mon, wake up,” Hiei pleaded, trying to wipe away the gunk on the baby’s face, but his vision was blurry, and he couldn’t see correctly. The world was muted, and everything felt like it was moving in slow-motion.
And then they heard it: the sound of tires screeching as Kurama turned the car around in the parking lot.
Hiei was over there so fast that Kurama almost hit him by mistake. But he swerved into an empty parking space at the last second and, seeing the look on Hiei’s face, soon clambered out of the car.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, eyes wide.
“Botan had a baby!” Hiei cried hysterically.
“She—she had what?”
“I said a BABY, you heard of ‘em?!”
“But she wasn’t—”
“That’s what she thought, too!” Hiei shouted, and grabbed Kurama’s arm, practically dragging him along. “Come on!”
Botan was inconsolable by the time they arrived at the curb. The baby still looked lifeless.
“Kurama, I didn’t know!” Botan was wailing, over and over. “I didn’t know…I didn’t know…”
“The baby’s not crying,” said Hiei, as if this wasn’t obvious. “I don’t know if she’s even breathing.”
“She’s likely still getting oxygen from Botan,” said Kurama, holding his arms out for the baby, and Botan handed her over, still sobbing. “Let me see what I can do.”
Hiei watched, terrified out of his wits, as Kurama held the baby up against his shoulder and patted her back, wearing the same urgent-but-calm look Hiei had seen on his face so many times.
“Wake up, honey,” he whispered, and when she didn’t seem to do so, he gave the cord a quick pinch. In an instant, the baby’s whole body seemed to jump-start, and she let out a single teeny, tiny cough.
“She’s alive!” Hiei cried in relief. True, a cough wasn’t a cry, but it meant she was breathing, and if she was breathing, she was alive.
The baby let out something that sounded like a sort of sneeze as Kurama turned her around to face him. He wiped her eyes and mouth with his thumb, then cleared her airway with his mouth: suck, spit. Suck, spit. Suck, spit…
“Come on,” he coaxed, holding her in the crook of his arm, as she sort of sneeze-coughed again. “Take a breath. Take a breath…”
Hiei was holding his own breath. Even Botan had stopped crying, and he knew she was watching intently, too. Suck, spit. Suck, spit…with less spit falling onto the pavement each time. Kurama finally turned her over on his palm and gently patted her back—it sounded like a pair of very small hands applauding. Thirty seconds later, she was crying. It was a tiny cry, but it was the best sound all three of them had ever heard.
“There we go,” said Kurama, finally smiling, as he kept rubbing her back. In seconds the little cry turned into loud squalling, and he handed her back to her mother. Botan started sobbing all over again, holding the baby in her arms. She was quickly becoming a healthy shade of pink, both her face and her body.
“Now we just need a warm blanket to wrap her up in,” said Botan tremulously, massaging the baby in her arms.
“Here. It’s not a blanket, but it’s warm.” Hiei took off his scarf and handed it to Botan. Kurama helped her wrap the baby up in it, and she rocked her daughter gently.
“How did you know?” Botan said finally. She was now running her fingers through the baby’s hair.
“Well, this certainly isn’t the first time I’ve had to do that,” said Kurama matter-of-factly. “Or even the hundredth.” He smiled. “You know, youkos can have up to fourteen babies at a time. And I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a litter with less than three.”
“Fourteen!” said Botan. “How do you ever manage fourteen babies?!”
“Because you have the whole community to help you,” Kurama explained. “You stay in the natal den full-time for a few weeks, while the others, most notably the father and any older children, bring you what you need. And when they get a little older, all the adults look after all the children. Babies are only born in spring, anyway, so the rest of the year is focused on farming.”
“You speak of the youko territory almost fondly,” Hiei observed.
“Well, it was where I spent the first couple hundred years of my life,” Kurama replied. “But it was a simple life, and I decided I didn’t want to spend the rest of my days as a doctor or a farmer. So here I am.”
“Here you are,” Botan agreed, her eyes shining. Then she turned to look at Hiei. “Thank you so much for helping me, Hiei.”
“You’re lucky the baby isn’t a boy,” Kurama added. The corners of his mouth were twitching.
“Why?” Hiei snapped.
“Because otherwise we would have to name her after you,” said Kurama, as Botan started to giggle. “Then you’d never live this down.”
“I didn’t even really do anything,” Hiei grumbled, trying not to show that he was embarrassed. Just as Kurama said, he would be perfectly happy if nobody mentioned this ever again. And now that he knew everyone was okay, he was back to his usual surly self.
“It was because of you that I didn’t have to give birth alone and scared,” Botan insisted. “You were even the one who caught her, so she wouldn’t land on the ground.”
“What are you going to name her?” Hiei asked, trying to steer the topic of conversation away from himself.
“Kiseki.” Botan smiled up at Hiei and Kurama. “Our little miracle.”
“It’s perfect,” said Kurama, giving Botan a kiss on top of her head. “Just like both of you.”
…
Kurama sent Hiei to the nearest supermarket to get some supplies for Kiseki, like diapers and a car seat, so they could all go to the nearest motel to rest and clean up. He would be faster than the car, and it would give him something to do while Kurama gave his wife and new daughter a checkup. Once he had given them both a clean bill of health, and Botan had passed the placenta, Kurama cut the baby’s cord, then wrapped her up with Hiei’s scarf again.
“So how did Hiei manage to help you give birth again?” he asked. By now, the baby was asleep in her mother’s arms.
“He just sort of…found the strength, I guess,” said Botan. “It was pretty amazing. But here’s what I don’t get. Why didn’t I realize I was pregnant?”
“Partly because we thought you couldn’t, I suppose,” said Kurama. “But sometimes the signs are more subtle. And sometimes if the baby is in a certain position, it’s not as easy to see them or feel them kick.”
“But I had my period, and you can’t have your period while you’re pregnant.” Botan frowned up at her husband. “Can you?”
“No…but a little bleeding is normal.” Kurama shrugged. “There were probably a few signs we just missed. But the important thing is that she’s here now, and that you two are okay.”
When Hiei came back, they were in the middle of a passionate kiss.
“Hey, get a room,” Hiei snapped. “I have the stuff. Now let’s get to a motel.”
Kurama was the only one of them who had ever changed a diaper, due to his babysitting days, so he did the first one. Kurama had instructed Hiei to buy some baby clothes, but they’d wait to put those on until the baby had been given a bath. They did, however, wrap her in one of the many new baby blankets, and they put a little pink hat on her head.
At the motel, they got two connecting rooms—one for Hiei, and one for Kurama, Botan, and their newborn. After they bathed the baby and dressed her in warm pajamas, Kurama built her a little swinging cradle out of sturdy branches, and they opened the window so she could sway gently in the breeze while she slept.
“Oh, it’s perfect, honey,” Botan breathed, setting little Kiseki down in the cradle. Kurama changed into the pajamas he’d bought as Botan gave the newborn a goodnight kiss. As he climbed into bed, suddenly exhausted, he realized she was singing again.
“Rock-a-bye baby, on the treetop…”
Kurama closed his eyes and smiled.
“When the wind blows, the baby will rock,” Botan sang softly. “When the bough breaks, the baby won’t fall…because Mama will catch baby, cradle and all.”
-the end-