A/N: Okay, I know I have another story going on (Check it out, it's called Even When We're Apart, We're Together), but I can't help it. It's merely three days until Christmas, and this is my gift to all of people on fan fiction! Yay! I mainly support Naruhina, but I also think Shinohina is the cuteness! It's a good pairing for fluff, don't you agree? Anyways, Happy Holidays!
Disclaimer: I own no characters used in this story unless I make it clear that one of them is my original character. Naruto and gang Masashi Kishimoto.
To the story!
No one in the Konoha Eleven had seen snow since they were very young. Hinata had heard stories from the older women in the village about how the snow looked, and immediately decided she wanted it to snow on her December birthday, but the most she got was cold so bitter she couldn't go outside.
Her family, being a very prominent (Hinata liked to say pompous), did not celebrate the holidays beyond wishes others of equal or high status Happy Holidays. Everyone she knew celebrated Christmas. Even Neji, who had moved in with Tenten, celebrated and gave gifts. He had given her an early gift, because he said he would be out of the village with Tenten, visiting some distant relatives of hers. The gift was a necklace. A pale lavender moon pendent with a darker purple fire swirl in the middle. On the back of it was a quote: "Even those with perfect visions cannot see the imperfection of the loving heart." Hinata had bothered him until he finally admitted that he had gotten that quote from a cheesy Valentines site. After sharing a good laugh, Hinata was alone in the Hyuga complex.
The younger generation of Hyuga enjoyed Christmas, and were eager to get away from the clan to celebrate. The past years, Hinata hadn't had anyone to spend the holidays with. Kiba had tried to explain multiple times to her that he would love to have her celebrate Christmas with him, but there was a ritual that involved only clan members and nin-dogs, and Hinata just couldn't quite understand the ritual, so she merely smiled at him, thanked him for his kind words, and continued.
The day before, Shino and herself had met up for one last training session before they took their Christmas break. Due to the thought of being alone at Christmas, she was distracted, an emotion that Shino recognized right away. "What's troubling you?" he asked, blunt as ever. Hinata couldn't help but spill her guts to him. "I have nowhere to spend Christmas this year. Since my family doesn't celebrate at all, on top of the usual ignorance, it looks like I'm going to have to skip out on the holiday entirely." she said, sitting down on a frozen log, making the seat of her pants rather cold and moist.
"Foolishness!"
His sudden outburst caused Hinata to look up in fright. She couldn't read his emotions because of the sunglasses, so she automatically assumed he was angry at her for something. But she was quickly proved wrong. "Please don't tell me they don't celebrate your birthday too." he said, sitting down next to her. "Most of the time, all I get is a happy birthday from Neji-nii-san and Hanabi-chan, maybe a present." she said. Shino shook his head, not saying anything.
"But, it's not all bad! Neji-nii-san gave me this necklace." she held up the pendent and he looked at it, reading the inscription. "Where'd Neji get this crap?" he muttered. "one of those cheesy websites for men who have no hope with women." she giggled. He smiled a little bit, then straightened up.
"Hinata, you're welcome to spend Christmas with me and my dad, if you want. I know Kiba's doing that clan thing, and he told me it involves the Dynamic Marking technique, and…"
"I don't want to know!" Hinata said. He chuckled a little. "Can I expect you at my home on Christmas Eve?" he asked, getting up. She straightened herself up, pushing herself off of the wet log. "Of course, Shino-kun. I'll be there." she smiled and he was suddenly grateful for his high collar and sunglasses. "Let's cut training short for today, okay?" he asked, putting his hands in his pockets to keep them warm. "Hai. See you Christmas Eve. I look forward to it!" she said, jogging off.
Shino sighed. He would have to tell his father about this, and that could only end in one of two things: embarrassment or his father collapsing on the couch in hilarity. Possibly both. He shook his head and decided to get it over with.
He entered the Aburame complex, carefully weaving around the toys the little kids had left in the yard. He saw two of his younger cousins, Aburame Shiki and Aburame Sanosuke, playing in the front yard. They were laughing and hitting each other with frozen clumps of dirt
Once inside, he hung up his coat and stood still for a minute, waiting for the heat of his home to warm him up. "Welcome back, Shino. Training session cut short?" Shibi asked from his seat on the couch. "Yeah." if he weren't so calm and collected, Shino would've been shifting from foot to foot. But the way he played with his belt loop gave him away anyway.
"Something you want to say, son?" Shibi said, lowering his sunglasses a fraction so the tips of his earthy-brown eyes were visible. "Well, I invited Hinata over to celebrate Christmas with us, since her family is a bunch of snobs who don't even celebrate the holiday. Is that okay?" the words came out in a rush. Shibi raised his eyebrows. "You trying to get a date out of it?" he asked, Shino blushed, angry and embarrassed. "No! She has no place to spend Christmas, Dad, did you expect me to just let her stay home?" he asked. Shibi chuckled at his flustered son.
"No, I didn't. Come on, son, you should know by now that I like to tease." he said. "Time to ditch the unhealthy habit, Dad. The student is always destined to surpass the master holy crap I sound like Neji." he said. Shibi laughed again.
Back at the Hyuga complex, Hinata was happy that she had somewhere to spend the holidays. She went into her room and changed into her favorite red sweater with a little silver bell on it. She couldn't help it, she felt so elated.
Someone knocked on her door. Duh dun duh dun dun. It was Hanabi. For the heck of it, she gave the two knocks that seemed required and opened the door. "I just got back from Konohomaru's. He said that Naruto was cool with you spending Christmas with him and Iruka-sensei." she said. Hinata waited for the familiar flutter of admiration and love to float around her stomach.
Nothing happened.
Naruto. Come on, the boy you're in love with? Ringing a bell, girl?
Again, nothing.
"Tell him no thanks. I'm already hanging with Shino on Christmas." she said. Hanabi's eyes seemed to widen. "Are you feeling okay? You realize who I'm talking about, right? They boy we can't even mention without you getting all red and stuttering?" she said, walking right in and folding her arms across her chest. "I know who you're talking about. I'm waiting for the butterflies to set in, but it's been three minutes and I haven't even felt the tiniest bit dizzy or nervous." Hinata reported.
"Hm…You said you were spending Christmas with Shino, right?" Hanabi emphasized his name. Either the butterflies from Naruto had a delayed reaction or Shino's name had set them off. Aparently, her expression have it away to her sister, who smirked and left the room, leaving a confused Hinata to ponder what was going on with her love life.
Hanabi pulled out her cell phone and texted Neji.
Neji, a Christmas miracle has just occurred before my eyes,
A few minutes later, she got a text back.
What happened? Will I be able to guess?
Hanabi sent another one back,
Nope! Hinata has gotten over Naruto!
Her phone rang.
"Are you freaking serious?!" Neji asked. "Yeah! She has finally seen the light!" Hanabi joked. "Have you told Hiashi-sama yet?" he asked. "No, I'm contemplating about how he'll take it. Either he'll embrace her with open arms or pass out, I'm not sure."
Christmas Eve finally came along, and Hinata could barely wait. She had made a chocolate Christmas cake with frosting poinsettias and holly leaves. Her present for Shino was wrapped colorfully and hidden deep in the pockets of her winter coat. She stared out her bedroom window, drawing bored circles on the window sill, willing the snow to fall. Sadly, the clouds in the sky didn't look like they would carry any moisture of any kind. She sighed, hearing the clock in the hallway strike six. "Time to go." she murmured to herself, getting up from her seat.
Not bothering to say goodbye, she put on all of her winter gear and headed out, saying a quick greeting to the guards outside. Her breath clung in the air like ice crystals, but still no snow. She sighed and started twirling the end of her hair. Ever since she had refused Naruto's offer for hanging out with him and Iruka, she had been confused. She loved him, right? Why did she suddenly feel she could care less? Why didn't the butterflies come until Shino's name was brought up in the conversation? Could Hanabi be right?
Come to think of it, my vigor for my crush on Naruto has been ebbing away bit by bit. Maybe I've finally realized it's just not meant to be. But why Shino, or all people? No, I shouldn't think like that, Shino-kun is a wonderful person. Misunderstood, which is why we get along so well.
She approached the Aburame complex and saw two little boys playing, commanding the kikai bugs inside their bodies to throw dirt at the opposite colony. Suddenly, a girl came by and started making fun of them. "You guys are so weird! You have bugs inside of you, doesn't it feel gross to have them crawling around inside of you?" she asked, putting her gloved hands on her hips.
"Actually, they don't crawl around inside of us. They make nests in out chakra network and veins, and help the flow of blood and chakra." one of them said. "Ewww!" the girl exclaimed. The kikai insects sensed the anger towards the girl coming from their hosts, and attacked on instinct, not because of command. In the girls rabid flailing, the bugs scattered away from their hosts and all around.
Once the girl left, the two boys started crying and searching for there colonies. Hinata felt bad for them, and knelt down on the ground, releasing her chakra in a web formation. She had watch Shino do it tons of times, so she knew what she was doing.
The boys had stopped crying and were watching her as the kikai crawled up her sleeves. She stood up and walked over to the boys. "I think that's all of them. Would you like to check?" she held out both of her arms, each colony taking up her arm length. When the colonies were back inside their hosts, the boys smiled at her. "Domo Arigoto!" they exclaimed. She giggled. "No problem."
"I still don't understand it, Hinata, how are you not freaked out by us having bugs inside of us?" she turned around and faced Shino. "I have eyes that can see through walls, skin, bone, rock, and basically everything else. I'm used to being a freak on a high scale that other weirdness seems to pale beside mine." she joked. He lifted the corner of his mouth in a half smile. It was then she realized his lower face wasn't hidden by his high collar, and that she could see his entire face, minus his eyes, which were still hidden behind the shades. She felt the butterflies float around in her stomach.
A/N: I know, that's a horrible pun. Why, damnit Shino, were you cursed to be so easy to make fun of?!
"I hope they weren't bothering you." he said, looking at the two little boys. Hinata shook her head. "Not at all. A little girl walked up to them and started making fun of their kikai colonies. The insects attacked ad scattered when she tried to swat them away. I was merely helping them retrieve them." she answered. "So didn't help, she got them all by herself! And let them crawl all over her arms, too!" Shiki said.
Shino smiled that half-smile at his cousins and Hinata felt all of the blood rush to her cheeks as he lead her off to his house. She heard the little boys whispering to each other. "I didn't know that Shino had a girlfriend!" one of them said. Both of them stopped in their tracks. Hinata blushed and Shino looked down, continuing without a word to the children.
"Hello, Hinata, nice to see you again." Shibi greeted Hinata as she and Shino entered the house. "Nice to see you to, Shibi-san." Hinata said, bowing to the older Aburame. He waved off the title. "Come on, we're friends, to a degree, just call me Shibi." he said, taking her coat and hanging it up for her. "Maybe one day you'll call me Dad-in-law." he muttered as he turned away.
The intense heat of Shino's glare could melt ice.
Shibi, I brought some cake." she said, holding out the tin-foil wrapped parcel. Shibi's face brightened considerably as he took it. "Great! We'll eat it after we decorate the tree." he said. She turned to Shino. "You didn't decorate yet?" she asked. "It's just a tradition. When my dad married my mom, a woman from outside the clan, they decided to mash some of the family traditions together. One of them was decorating the tree on Christmas Eve." he explained, shrugging.
"That reminds me, I've never met your mother." she said. "She died when I was four." he said, shoving his hands in his pockets and looking at the wood-paneling of the floor. She gently placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry." her voice was barely over a whisper.
"Don't just stand there in the doorway, come in, you two!" Shibi said, coming back into the living room. Shino walked briskly over to the corner where a magnificent tree stood, lights already draped around it. "Want to help decorate?" he asked, holding up a box of ornaments. She nodded. "I'd love to! I haven't gotten to decorate for Christmas since my mother passed." she said.
She found the ornaments to be very cute; her favorite was a small glass butterfly with a Santa hat on it. "I better go save you're cake from my dad, he's probably already eaten half of it. Go ahead and continue decorating, I'll be right back." he said, getting up. She nodded
Shino walked into the kitchen to find his father, indeed, stuffing his face with cake. Shibi turned around, his mouth full of food. He held out a fistful of cake and icing to his son. "Cake?" he asked, chocolate crumbs falling out of his lips. Shino rolled his eyes and Shibi laughed after swallowing. "So how's it going with Hinata?" he asked, wiggling his eyebrows. Shino blushed. "For the last freaking time, we're just friends!"
"Sure…"
"Shut up!"
Shibi laughed again. "You may be friends right now, but do you want to stay just friends?" he asked. Shino was shocked at his father's seriousness. "Remember, Shino, I want lots of grandkids!" Yep, that's more like his father. "You're sick, Dad. Save some of the cake for us." he said, going back into the living room.
He kneeled back beside Hinata. "How's it coming?" he asked. "I got a lot done while you were talking to your father." she said. He peered into the box. "We only have a few ornaments left until we have to put on the angel.(1)" he said. "Oh, that reminds me!" She pulled out the tightly wrapped gift. "Merry Christmas." she smiled widely, handing the gift to him.
He looked at it for a while, then carefully unwrapped it. It was a origami cicada on a small hook, to be used as an ornament. She had sprayed it with something to make it stay like that. He smiled that half smile and again Hinata felt all the blood rush to her cheeks and ears. She was afraid it was going to squirt out from under her skin.
"Thank you, Hinata-chan." he said. Her heart pounded.
He called me -chan! He normally only calls me Hinata!
He placed it right at the top of the tree, below where the angel would go. Both of them smiled at it. "Dad, we're getting ready to put the angel on! You're not going to stand in there and eat all of the cake!" he yelled, turning his head to the kitchen. "I'm coming, I'm coming." Shibi came into the room, wiping cake crumbs off of his shirt and face. "Hinata, why don't you put it on, since you're our guest?" he asked, handing her the figurine. She nodded and tried to reach, but found she was too short.
She tried jumping, but that only resulted in her loosing her balance and falling right on top of Shino, knocking him down in the process. She scrambled up, apologizing profusely and blushing like mad. "It's okay, Hinata-chan, no blood, no foul." he said, getting up. She blushed again at the use of -chan.
"Here, let me help." he picker her up at the waist and she placed the angel on the tree. He let her down quickly and looked away so she wouldn't see his blush. Shibi just laughed. "I'm gonna go get some hot chocolate. Do you two want some?" he asked. "Yes please." Hinata said. "Sure." Shino replied. Shibi went into the kitchen, snickering to himself. Deciding he didn't want to know, he sat down on the couch and patted the seat cushion next to him, motioning for her to sit down.
She complied and sat down, looking at his sunglasses intently. "Is there something on my face?" he asked. She shook her head. "I'm wondering what your eyes look like. In all the time I've known you, I've never seen your eyes." she said. He didn't say anything, just looked away. She frowned.
"The eyes are the window to the soul, you know."
"My windows are locked, try the backdoor."
"Shino!"
"Oh alright."
He reached up and took off his glasses. "Happy?" Hinata was breathless. His eyes were a soft, earthy brown with a band of golden around them, like a halo. His eyes were beautiful. He began to put the glasses back on, but she grabbed his wrists in a impulsive action. "Leave them off." she said. "No way, I feel uncomfortable without them." he said. "Come Shino, please?" she bit on the puppy-dog pout that Kiba had taught her many years ago. "No."
She grabbed the glasses from him and sprung herself off the couch. "You want them? Come get them!" she said, suddenly playful. He frowned and launched himself to his feet. "Give them back, Hinata." he commanded, holding out his hands. "You'll have to get them from me." she said, tossing them up in the air and catching them. "Hinata…" he said. She just laughed and he gave chase, following her around the living room. "Give me my shades, Hinata!" he yelled. "Not until you catch me!" she shouted over her shoulder. He grunted and put forth a burst of speed, catching her by the waist. "There, I've caught you…now give. Them. Back." he panted.
"Hey guys, look up!" Shibi said. Both teenagers looked up and blushed like mad.
Above them, kikai from Shibi's colony were holding up some mistletoe.
"You know the tradition!" he sang. "Dad…" Shino growled. Before anyone else could say anything, Hinata, in a sudden burst of courage, kissed Shino quickly on the cheek. He felt said body part burst into heat, then suddenly kissed her on the lips.
Hinata's entire face turned red as he held her chin in between his thumb and index finger so her face was tilted towards his. Her heart thudded against her rubs as he wrapped his right arm around her waist, drawing her close. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the kiss.
When they broke for air, Shibi was trying to hold back his laughter. "Dad, you can go now." he said. "I could, but-" he was interrupted. "You will." the sheer freezing quality of his voice made Shibi back out of the room. Hinata laid her head on Shino's shoulder, her eyes closed. He turned his head and smiled.
"Hinata-chan, look, it's snowing."
She lifted her head and saw that it was true. Soft white flakes were falling down like bits of cotton. She smiled and he kissed the top of her head. "Merry Christmas, Hinata-chan." he murmured into her hair. "Merry Christmas, Shino-kun."
I know, Hinata get's a bit OOC, but it was fin to write her as playful! Shino had to be OOC, because normal Shino doesn't give me much to work with. Merry Christmas, everyone!