Blanket disclaimer: Naruto doesn't belong to me. Neither does anything else in here that looks like it comes from something that's copyrighted. I drew some inspiration from "Shame and Fame" by ckret2, but I believe that there will not be significant overlap between ckret2's work and my own.
AN: I am both cautiously excited about this story and insecure about it. Excited because I think I might be able to stick with this story, cautious because I have a horrible track record for completing fics, and insecure because… well. Hopefully you like what you read, and whether you do or not, I'd appreciate constructive criticism!
Chapter 1: The First Story
His door was ajar, so that meant he was "safe". All the dangerous patients and most of the creepy ones were locked in, so that they couldn't get out and do something they shouldn't. The ones who were sane until bothered would close their doors, or sometimes they would lock them from the inside.
The first thing she thought, when she looked into the room, was that she had never seen him before. That was strange, since he looked like a shinobi child, and she had never seen him at school. Therefore, he must be very interesting. He also had dolls on the table by his bed, which was another good sign, even if they weren't pretty dolls like hers. Lastly, he was bored. She could see it in the slouch of his shoulders, the look in his eyes. That was all the invitation she needed.
She marches into his room with all the confidence of a person who has legitimate business walking into it, and plops herself down into the chair by his bed. "Hi," she chirps with a smile, "Who're you?"
He's confused, she can see it in his face, and he doesn't answer her question. "Are you in the right room?" he asks. "I don't know who you are."
"I'm Ino Yamanaka. I'm six years old and I like playing dress up," she replies easily, too easily for a shinobi child, "Pleased to meetcha." She pauses, and adds as an afterthought, "And if you hurt me my daddy'll melt your brains. So, who are you?"
He laughs at the way she transitions so easily between threats and pleasantries, at the way practically she reeks of innocence with her easy smiles and openness. He can't remember being that way before, and suddenly, he feels like a big kid, experienced and proud. He is bigger than her, after all. "I'm nobody," he smirks at her.
"You can't do that!" she pouts. "You have to tell me more than that."
"What if I don't want to?" He watches her reaction, observing the brow furrowed in concentration and the way her lips crinkle together like a drawstring purse as she tries to create a response.
"Tell me about your dolls," she says, pointing to the ones by his bed. "What are their names? What do they do?"
"That's a secret," he teases, because he hasn't known anyone who reacts quite as easily as she does. She thinks a bit more, staring hard at the ceiling in her concentration.
"Tell me a story, then."
"And if I don't?"
"Then I'll go find someone else to talk to."
"Alright, then." He decides to humor her, if only because he is eight, and he is bored and no one ever comes by to visit if they don't have to, anyway. She smiles at him sunnily, before making her demands.
"Tell me a story about a prince—a handsome prince and a pretty princess. She's blonde."
He begins, "There once was a prince. He was alone in the world, except for a princess, a beautiful princess with golden hair." Ino grinned. "They were alone in the world, and there was no one else. Then, one day, a Demon came."
"What did it look like?"
"Uh… It was pale and small, with green eyes. It looked harmless at first. The prince and the princess did not know it was evil when they first saw it, because it looked weak and defenseless." He continued,"One day, when the prince and princess were playing, they came too close to the Demon's cave. The princess got hurt. She got hurt really bad."
"That's stupid." Ino scowls.
"What?" Taken aback, he says, "You can't just say that. It was a powerful Demon."
"Well," she huffs, "The prince should've rescued the princess. That's what princes are supposed to do! "
He thinks it over. "Yes," he agrees, "The princess got hurt because the prince wasn't strong enough to defend her the first time. So the prince became stronger so he could protect her from the Demon. And when he was strong enough, he defeated the demon so that no one would ever get hurt again. And then the prince and the princess lived happily ever after."
Ino nods. "That makes more sense." Pushing herself off the chair, she waves at him on her way to the door. "I gotta go now, thanks for the story!" And then he is alone.
"Yes, that does make more sense, doesn't it," he muses, looking at his dolls.