Thanks to beyond-the-oaks for the review! Not only was it the first review (which always holds a special place in my heart), but it was a really good one too! So thank you very much! Also, I've actually started watching the anime. Some of the voices are spot on to me, like Sasuke's and Tenten's, but others (most actually) sound like nails on a chalkboard. Plus they made my two favorite characters, Shikamaru and Kiba, seem really lame. And Shikamaru keeps saying "what a drag" instead of "how troublesome," which also seems lame to me. Ah well.
He woke up the next morning feeling more exhausted than when he had gone to bed. Not only had he been in a great deal of pain, but he couldn't stop worrying about Suki. It was troublesome, really, he thought to himself. He found he was rather cross.
It put him in an even worse mood when he came downstairs and saw Suki as cheerful as ever, following his mother around the kitchen like a baby duckling, asking about how to steam rice and make miso. He sank down grumpily in his chair.
"What's the matter with you?" Shikako wondered, sipping his tea. "You look awful."
Shikamaru glowered. "I couldn't sleep," he muttered, ignoring Suki when she gave him an inquisitive look. He escaped from the house as quickly as he could.
Suki spent the morning following Yoshino around, helping her clean the dishes and wash the laundry. But Yoshino had to make a shopping trip into the village center, so she bid her young houseguest goodbye and headed off. Suki was left by herself.
That was when it was the worst, when she was alone. Suki found herself sitting in the windowsill in the guest bedroom, her knees drawn up to her chest, crying. She wept over the things she was trying to run away from and for the things she wanted that seemed so far out of her grasp. She rested her chin against her knee and wailed.
The sun was hot as it streamed through the open window, burning the exposed side of her leg. A warm breeze rustled her loose hair, tumbling unchecked over her shoulder, fluttering the loose fabric of her borrowed kimono. Suki stifled another sob.
There was the sound of the front door closing and footsteps on the stairs. Using her kimono sleeve, Suki wiped furiously at the tears in her eyes.
The footsteps paused outside the room, and Shikamaru came through the door. He took in her red, swollen eyes without a word, then crossed the room to her. Suki watched him approach anxiously, fresh tears standing out on her flushed cheeks.
He took her face in his hands, his long skinny fingers tingling on her cheeks. He wiped away a salty tear with his thumb. "Do you want to talk about it?" he offered.
A wave of uncontrollable emotion washed over her, and she had to look down at her toes, half-hidden beneath the skirt of the kimono. "No, I'm okay," she lied softly.
He bent down and pressed his lips gently to the top of her head, inhaling the sweet scent of tropical flowers. "Cheer up, hime," he told her gently. "Nothing is as bad as it seems." He gave her hand a reassuring squeeze before disappearing out the door. She could hear his footsteps ascending the stairs.
Suki touched the place on her cheek where he had touched her, chewing on her lower lip thoughtfully. A chirping bird outside her window brought her back to reality, and she noticed the location of the sun in the sky. It was just after one o'clock, so she washed her face and left for the Hyuuga main house.
She had memorized the way from the Hyuuga estate to the Nara residence on her tour with Iruka the night before, but that route had taken her by the Inuzuka house. So it was that she found herself outside the Inuzuka house seven minutes later.
Hana and Kiba were in the courtyard, playing with Akamaru. They waved when they saw Suki, and she explained how she had ended up there.
Kiba laughed heartily, and Suki wasn't sure whether to laugh with him or be offended. "Come on then," he said, whistling for Akamaru. "I'll show you the way to the Hyuuga main house. You can't trust a woman with directions." He waved to his sister and the two of them, followed by Akamaru, set off down the road.
"Thank you for showing me the way," she said, tucking a loose strand of her blonde hair behind her ear.
He gave her a surprised look from underneath heavy lashes. "Well, what do you know?" he grinned, showing off his sharp canine teeth. "You're already learning to be polite and friendly!"
She laughed delightedly.
Kiba rested his arms over his head, then quickly dropped them to his side, wincing. "So tell me about Taki," he suggested.
Suki let out her breath expansively, twisting her hair off her sweaty neck. "It's a nice enough place, I suppose. The weather's always nice except in the spring, when the hurricanes come. It's warm enough to swim all year round."
"What, even in the winter?"
"It never gets cold in Taki," she repeated. "But I hate it there. They're always telling me how to dress and when to eat and what to do with my time. They don't let me do anything. I'm a certified chuunin, but I never had to pass the exam. I've never even had a real fight."
Kiba gaped at her. "Never?"
"Never." She shook her head.
"Well then, we're going to have to teach you," he grinned, punching her lightly on the arm. "We'll show you firsthand how we do it in Konoha."
"I'd like that very much," she said as they strolled through the crowded streets, passing shops with brightly-colored wares displayed in the windows. She chewed on her bottom lip thoughtfully. "I'm staying with the Nara family. What do you know about Shikamaru?"
Kiba shrugged, his hands in his pockets. "Shikamaru's a lazy bastard," he explained, chuckling to himself. "Unfortunately, he's one of the smartest shinobis Konoha has ever seen. He's got a really high I.Q. He's a genius."
"Seriously? I would never have guessed," Suki said thoughtfully. They had passed through the center of the village and were heading into more residential neighborhoods now.
Kiba chuckled. "Yeah, like I said, he's a lazy bastard. But, even so, he's one of the good guys."
"That's good to know..." Suki said thoughtfully.
They stopped at the entrance to the Hyuuga estate. "Well, have fun at your tea party," he teased. "Will you still be stopping by tomorrow?"
"Of course. I'll probably stop by tonight as well, to check on your injuries," she told him, putting her arms around him and inhaling his faintly canine aroma.
He seemed surprised. "What's all this about?"
"Yoshino-sama, Shikamaru's mother, told me that you hug the people you like..." Suki dropped her arms, worried that she had crossed a social boundary. It would have been much easier if she had been taught, as most children had been, what was socially acceptable and what was not.
"In that case..." Kiba grabbed her roughly and drew her to him, enveloping her in his strong arms. He pressed his face to her soft hair, shining like a halo in the afternoon sunshine. "I'm very glad we're friends, Suki." He released her, patting the top of her head like a big brother. "Have fun! Tell Hinata hello for me!" he called after her.
She paused on the porch and waved back, then she rang the bell. She looked over her shoulder again, but he was already gone.
It was Hinata herself who answered the door, her long dark hair tumbling over one shoulder. Her eyes were wide and there was an ever-present blush in her cheek. "Katsuki-san," she exclaimed. "What a pleasure to see you again! Please come in! The others are already here..."
"Others...?" Suki repeated, following Hinata down the corridor towards the back parlor she had once visited before.
Hinata looked alarmed, as though she had offended her guest. "I'm so sorry," she stammered apologetically. "They heard that I'd invited you, and they insisted on joining us. I can send them away if you'd like..."
"No, that's alright," Suki assured her. She couldn't imagine Hinata sending anyone away. "The more the merrier!" She smiled, but there was an unfamiliar, anxious feeling deep in the pit of her stomach. All the people she had met so far in Konoha were pleasant: Shikamaru, Kiba, Hinata. What if those she was to meet today were less welcoming? She knew she was lacking when it came to social manners.
There were three girls already in the parlor. They were talking earnestly with one another, but fell silent when Hinata entered with the kimono-clad foreigner.
The eldest, who was perhaps a year older than the others with dark hair and a pleasant, easy-going expression, got to her feet and held out her hand. "You must be Katsuki," the girl said, shaking Suki's hand pleasantly. "I'm Tenten. These are Ino and Sakura. We're all Leaf chuunin."
"It's very nice to meet you." Suki couldn't hide her relief that this girl with her hair in matching buns was so friendly.
The girl with the very long blonde hair, the one with the pinched face, gave Suki a suspicious look. "Is it true that you're the Fifth Hokage's daughter?"
"You're the Hokage's daughter?" Hinata repeated, surprised.
Suki chewed on her lower lip. "Tsunade gave birth to me, that is true," she finally said slowly. "But she is not what defines who I am."
The pink-haired girl, Sakura, cheerfully kicked the pinched-looking blonde on the ankle. "See Ino?" she grinned. "I told you she'd be cool! Now come sit next to me, Katsuki, and tell me what you think about Konoha so far!"
The five of them spent the afternoon quite pleasantly. Suki was amazed to find that she got along with Tenten, who was laid-back, and Sakura, who was more uptight but friendly, spectacularly. Ino was a more difficult person to please, but even she opened up after an hour or so and talked freely.
They were having such a good time that they hardly noticed the sun moving steadily towards the western horizon, casting a twilight glow over the village of Konoha.
Another chapter down! There's a lot more to come. I've noticed that I have a couple of alerts and favorites for this story: if you like it, please review! It lets me know how I'm doing. On another, completely unrelated note, my son stood up on his own for the first time this week! He's seven and a half months old and he stood up all by himself! I was so proud I had to share it with everyone lol