Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Petshop of Horrors, and KH2.
My Hime
A scream echoed through the night, a horrid, wretched scream.
The little boy watched as the body vanished beneath the surf, tears falling. No, it was a game remember? A silly game, a game to punish papa. She was going to come up, going to wave at him with that beautiful smile on her face.
"Mommy!"
A silly, silly game.
Naruto opened the door with his foot, struggling with the buckets of fish. He grunted with the exertion, sweat falling down his face and getting into his eyes.
"Damn it!" he swore, pausing to try and blink the salt out, resulting in closing the door on his wrist and dropping four of the six buckets of fish all over the floor. "Shit! Fuck! Damn." Naruto held his injured wrist, breathing through clenched teeth.
There was a splash and hard, wet smacks sounded against the floor as the mermaid crawled like a seal towards him. She cradled his wrist with small hands, looking at him with concerned colorless eyes.
Naruto sighed. "It's okay. Nothing's broken so don't worry, um…" He struggled to remember her name but drew a blank instead. "Crap. I don't even know your name."
"Hinata," the voice of the count came from the door, having stepped over the mess of fish that cluttered the hallway floor. "Her name is Hinata. And her brother's name is Neji."
"Huh. Sunshine and Screw. Nice names. Did you think of them yourself?" Naruto asked with sarcasm.
"Yes!" Count M replied happily. "I'm so glad you think so, Mr. Uzumaki."
The blonde sighed with annoyance and didn't bother to answer. Instead, he moved to clean up the mess that he did.
"What are you doing here, Count?" he asked, not really expecting a straight forward answer.
"Oh! Of course. Naminé is grateful for her," the count said.
"And?"
"And what" Aren't you happy?"
"Don't fuck with me, count. I hear an 'and' so cut the crap and just say it!"
"You know, Mr. Uzumaki. Anger causes stress and stress causes baldness. Keep this up and you'll lose all your pretty hair by the time you're twenty."
Naruto threw a fish at his face, to which the count masterfully avoided. Neji, the merman, jumped from the water and caught it, giving a magnificent display.
Naruto frowned. "Show off."
"Well naturally. Mermans are the showiest fish in the sea. They use such shows to catch a mate." Count M looked fondly at both fish.
The blonde sighed and continued to clean up his mess. "You're just here to mess with me again, aren't you?"
"No! Of course not. I just wanted to ask you if you would prepare a special fish for me…"
Naruto stopped cleaning and stared at the Count. He knew that tone of voice. It was the same he used with Naminé, with Malice Alice.
Trying not to show his alarm at this, the blonde stood and wiped his hands on the black apron he wore. "What kind of fish?" he asked warily.
"You'll see, Mr. Uzumaki."
Okay, Naruto was really not liking that smile…
The room was dark, and the smoke from the incense thickened the room like fog. Naruto sneezed from the strong smell, coughing a little as it settled down his throat.
"Sorry, Mr. Uzumaki. I had forgotten you are not used to this amount of incense," Count M said, not sounding sorry at all. The blonde knew it was useless to comment and opted instead to glare at the back of the pink head.
The count ignored him and went to draw a curtain, motioning for the blonde to come closer. Warily, he complied and was faced to face with a large tank, filled with murky water. The tank seemed different in shape and the glass was thicker than the one Neji and Hinata live in.
"What type of fish lives in this?" Naruto asked appalled.
"A very rare kind. I caught him a week ago. Poor thing washed up ashore." The count watched as the blonde assistant went up and touched the glass. "Oh, Mr. Uzumaki? I wouldn't do that if I were you-"
THWACK!
Naruto jumped back as a large bodied, blue skinned figure crashed against the glass. He had the impression of sharp teeth and small, beady black eyes and spiky blue hair before the apparition swam away, receding back into the darkness of the water.
"Yeah, perhaps I should have mention the aggression of this particular fish," Count M said, amused by the blonde's reaction.
"You think?" Naruto growled fiercely, a faint blush tinting his cheeks.
Count M placed his hand on the glass, watching unfazed as the strange fish once again slammed into the glass, only this time he stayed in place, floating on the spot. Prior to his first impression of the beast, Naruto saw it was half blue skinned man, half blue scaled fish, the tail and sideways and sharp, made to swim one way, forward. A dorsal fin protruded from the creature's back and two strange fins hung like overturned pockets from the spot where man became fish.
"Beautiful, isn't he?" Count M praised. "Makes me almost want to keep him. Alas, though, a costumer has already bought him."
"You're the store owner. Couldn't you just refused the offer?" Naruto asked, though he wasn't complaining. As long he wasn't made to take care of him, the blonde was fine with it.
"I could, but then Grandfather will be very, very cross with me. He is, after all, the true owner of the shop," the count explained.
"Where is the old man now?" Naruto asked, coming a little bit closer seeing as the blue shark was focused more on the count then him.
"Touring the world," M replied. "Searching for more wonders hidden by human nature. Soon, I will join him. But enough of that. Let me explain the process that I wish for you to perform on this fish, Mr. Uzumaki. " He moved to the other side of the tank and Naruto followed with dread forming a pressure on his chest. "The costumer has supplied us with this portable tank in which to transport the animal. All I want for you to do is to swim in the water. Kisame will do the rest."
"Kisame?" Naruto repeated, looking at the fish that seemed to leer at him.
"That is his name."
"Do you ever let the buyers decided what to call them?" the blonde asked.
"One must not forcefully replace one's true name with another," Count M told his assistant. "To do so will kill the spirit of the holder and it becomes nothing but a hulk of flesh. Names have power, Mr. Uzumaki, and everyone is born with their own individual one."
"But that doesn't make any sense," Naruto protested. "Parents name their children before they are even born. If that's true, how does that apply to them?"
With a strange expression, Count M said, "Humans are different. One day, you'll see, Mr. Uzumaki. With your true eyes."
"Eh?" Naruto felt something more behind those words. But before he could question it, the count pulled away and the thought left him, making him utterly confused of the ghost of words on the tip of his tongue ready to spill in gibberish.
"Now then. Mr. Uzumaki, remove your clothes and change into this. I'll prepare the transfer." M gave Naruto blue swimming trunks and moved towards a machine that was obscure from view. Coming inside, he was not surprised when he wasn't alone.
"You shouldn't have said that; it isn't wise. D-d, are you sure this is the right time? Naru-Naru's confused; poor guy. Is it really his fate to die?" A familiar weight landed on his shoulder.
"No, no!" Count M protested. "Don't say things like that. You'll end up making it true. Besides," he took a glance at the blonde boy, who eyed the tank with distrust even as he climbed in the smaller, travel-sized one. "This one is different. He might be… the Pasé."
………………………………...
Naruto dried himself with a towel. The transfer had went, well, it was as though all he had to do was show Kisame where to swim to. Simple and easy, if it weren't for that strange passing glance the fish had given him. It was almost familiar in its leering smile of anticipation. It almost reminded him of…
"Naru-Naru! How you been? Did you enjoy your swim?"
Naruto turned to Malice Alice, a demonic bird known for its love of gore. Its appearance, however, could fool any unknowing soul; after all, who would mistake a beautiful child for anything evil?
"What do you want?" he asked bluntly, not all careful as most would be around the bird. Something inside him just caused him to act this way. Something that has been with him since the bird had almost destroyed its last master.
"Now, now. Don't be like that. How long are you going to stay mad? It's in my nature; you should know that by now. So wipe off that pout!" Malice jumped forward and lightly brushed his lips, as though she intended to change Naruto's expression herself.
Naruto moved her hand away and towards his employer who now reached them. "If that's all for today, I need to get going," he said, slipping on the last of his clothes. He wore his jeans over the damp trunks. Even with the discomfort, there was no way in hell he was going to change with the psychotic Malice watching.
"Of course," M replied. "It's not like I'm forcing you to stay here. I don't know why you continue to treat this place as a prison, Mr. Uzumaki." The count sighed and shook his head with remorse. "I so hoped you would call this shop your home away from home."
Naruto scoffed. "That's seems unlikely as a hot summer day in Siberia. Good bye."
Naruto left the shop, all to aware of the eyes that followed his retreat. Eyes that seemed to know so much about him, yet don't give a damn clue how to answer his many questions. Naruto brushed them off like always and left Chinatown, wandering aimlessly.
It had been a couple of weeks since he started working at the Count M Petshop. Weeks that's kept him from the street and well endowed with money that he could finally afford to keep real food in an actual refrigerator, not in the ratty old ice box the nice old man next door had given him before they took him to the nursing home. To some, it would seem life for the blonde was finally looking up.
So why Naruto didn't feel happy? Why did he feel that the worst was coming and that he should be preparing for it?
His mother would have known what this feeling was; would have spared him the riddles and given him a full answer. Too bad the dead didn't talk, though even in life she wouldn't be able to give him much answers from her guarded room in the mansion, where she wasted away to nothing.
Stop, Naruto berated himself. Don't think about the past. It wont get you any where. Without thinking much about it and just needing to get out of the quiet streets that gave too much opportunity to think, Naruto entered the nearest fast food establishment and stood in line.
The smells of refrigerated food cooking calmed Naruto more than any drug could. The sounds around him, people talking, even a child's shrill screaming, all was relaxing. What more could he want than this momentary freedom from his insanity?
"Can I help you?"
"Give something so greasy that it's guarantee to kill me on the first bite," Naruto said, not really paying attention.
"Geeze, Naruto. Is living really that bad?" the server asked, terribly amused.
He turned to the sight of a smirking Kairi, wearing the restaurant's uniform. The sight of her working, despite knowing that she didn't need to, still surprised Naruto. He could see her anywhere else, doing anything else. Just not here.
"Has my beauty finally render you speechless?" Kairi asked playfully, even striking a pose.
"Why would you think that?" Naruto frowned, a bit confused.
"Because you haven't stopped staring at me for the past five minutes."
"Oh." Naruto, to his increasing surprise, felt himself blush. I must be getting sick, he thought and left it at that.
"Well? If you don't mind ordering specifically, I have other costumes to attend to."
"Yeah. Sure," Naruto said awkwardly. He gave a quick glance to the board that displayed the meals overhead and ordered the number one. Kairi wrung it up and he paid. Before he could leave so the others could order as well, she grabbed hold of his arm.
Naruto looked at her.
"Hey. I'm almost done with my shift. Want to take a walk together?" Kairi asked. "That is, if you're free and don't mind spending time with me?"
Naruto considered her offer, wondering on what he was going to do after finishing his fat full meal. now that he was off work, there really wasn't much to do with his free time. Shrugging, Naruto accepted the offer and stepped to the side to wait for his food.
Meanwhile, he watched Kairi work as she took the orders of her costumers. He noticed her bright smile and the easy way she treated her costumers. It was no secret she was well liked, especially by the regulars. Hell, some of the males even flirted with her, saying things that would guarantee to make her laugh and continue to flash that beautiful smile. For a moment, while watching the easy-going Kairi, Naruto almost forgot who she truly was.
And how much he despised her.
Naruto was handed his order five minutes later and Kairi disappeared from the cash registers. He was about to leave when she appeared again, out of uniform garb but instead of wearing designer's clothes, Naruto was shocked to see her wearing a band shirt and worn jeans complete with old black sneakers. Kairi came up to him with a calmer smile, yet it still had the same effects.
"Shall we?" she asked, moving towards the door.
Naruto shrugged and stuffed the last of his fries into his mouth. He threw away the small box they came in and followed after the ever-surprising brunette.
They walked down to the streets in silence, save for Naruto's munching the hamburger he bought and Kairi humming under her breath. But as Naruto finished into the last bite, Kairi spoke to him.
"So Naruto, what's on your mind?"
The blonde shrugged and crumbled his trash into a ball. "Nothing important or worth telling/"
"Liar. Something's been bothering you ever since that run in with my sister. I know you hate the way I'm being nosy but despite what you think, I care about you. I consider you as my friend, Naruto. Please think of that once in a while."
Naruto sighed and threw the crumbled ball into a passing dumpster trunk. "You make it sound so simple. Like you will actually listen to me say stuff that belongs in a paranormal website. Sorry Kairi, but I've lost my faith in normal people a long time ago. Simply put, I cant tell you and I would appreciate it if you stopped worrying about me. I've never consider you as my friend."
He expected an outburst from that. He didn't expect the pat on his shoulder or the small, understanding smile that seem to serve in making her blue eyes even larger.
"Sure Naruto," she said. "Say what you will. But you'll come to see that I'm different than most normal people." Her smile deepened. "I don't care what you say, Naruto. I'm still here. And I'll always be here, whenever you're ready to talk." She moved past him, leaving him behind.
"I don't understand you," Naruto finally said, running up to catch her.
Kairi looked back and smirked. "Consider that a good thing, Naruto."
………………………………...
He was drowning, yet not drowning. The dark waters was over his head, yet he felt no effects of the pressure or the lack of air.
He felt the presence of foreign thoughts, circling in his mind like sharks in water. Accompanied by different feelings, all centering on a sound coming from nearby. He felt his body move in anticipation, swaying to each tune and note struck. The music was plain, but it was beautiful to him, played by a scratchy flute led by a stammering flaw. Again, it was pitiful to hear but for some reason un-profound pleasure ran through his veins.
The door opened the music stopped, though startled. Disappointed filled him and he splashed in distress.
"Who's there?" asked a voice.
Come closer. Come to me, siren. Let me see you.
(No! Don't! That'll be terminating the contract!)
Footsteps came near.
Yes! Come closer! Come so I can feast on your flesh!
"Who is there?" repeated the voice from before. "Why aren't you answering? I demand you tell me who you are!"
Step…. Step….
Yes! Yes!
(No. Go away! Don't come closer. Please. Go. AWAY!)
Naruto sat up in bed, gasping faintly. A sheen of cold sweat covered his body as he sought to catch his breath. The dream, the source of his fear, had vanished into the unconscious mind, making it difficult to remember what had scared him so. Sighing, breathing back under control, Naruto laid back, turned on his side, and went back to sleep, unaware of the eyes that watched him, especially an amused shade of black.
………………………………
"Hey. Naruto. Naruto! Earth to Naruto!"
Naruto wearily opened his eyes and look into worried blue ones. "What, Kairi? What the fuck do you want?" he muttered angrily at the lost of sleep.
"It's time to go to the next class," she told him gently. "Come on."
"Oh." Yawning, Naruto collected his things and began the trek out of the classroom to the next. He felt the brunette follow him but didn't say a word. It wasn't as though her actions had surprised him. Their previous encounter was still fresh in his mind and also he didn't want to start something that he wont be able to control. Besides, he needed the quiet time to think.
For the past nights, he hadn't had much sleep. A nightmare he can never remember jolts him awake, but even as he goes back to sleep, he feels drained in the morning. Naruto wasn't entirely sure, but he felt it might have something to do with that obscuring presence that had momentarily taken over that time in Naminé's stepmother's house. That being who hated humans.
"Um, Naruto?" Kairi's voice was like a beacon of light flashed into one's eyes, causing a flare of pain.
He continued to walk, barking out an irritated "What?"
"We're here." She indicated the door of their next class.
"Oh," he said again, squinting at the door in a glare as though it had suddenly appeared on purpose. Damn, why was the world spinning? And why did his head hurt so bad?
"Hey. Are you okay?" Kairi's face came into his line of sight, but it was hazy and distorted and just seem to increase the wretched pressure surrounding his temples. Fingertips brushed against his forehead gently and he gasped as they sparked a strange electricity within his mind.
Water, made dark by the absence of light…
"Naruto! You're burning up!"
Music, a drifting lullaby in the next room…
"Come on. You need to see the nurse." Stiffly, Kairi tried to lead him away from the melting door.
Please. Let me see you, siren. Let me have just one glance…
"No," the blonde moaned, pulling from her embrace.
"No? Naruto, you have a fever. You really need to see her," the brunette tried to explaining, holding her hands in front of her as though in preparance to ward off a blow, only then did he realized he had raised his hands in a crazed gesture.
"I have to go," Naruto said brusquely in a panic.
"Okay. Let's go. It's this way." Once again, Kairi tried to lead him in the direction of the nurse's office. Once again, he shook away her embrace.
"No! I need to go. I have to stop Kisame…"
He stop talking. The world stopped spinning and turned black instead.
………………………………...
Voices flooded the room, rousing Naruto from the blissful, dreamless sleep he was in. He sat up and became still, noticing the pressure on his lap and loose tug of his hand. He looked down and saw the sleeping form of Kairi, head on his lap and her hand tightly enveloping his. Naruto stared for a moment, then moved his sight towards his surroundings. He laid on a bed too small for him, his feet being lifted by an additional chair. The curtains drawn around a cubicle space and the sheer whiteness of the place told him he was at least in the nurse's office. It didn't explain how he got here.
Naruto laid back carefully, to not disturb the sleeping girl and thought over what had happened. He had been asleep, woken up to Kairi telling him it was time for next class, feeling like shit and the world was spinning. He remembered water, something swimming in it, wishing to see someone. And then, the world turned black.
Sighing, Naruto draped his arm over his eyes. "What's happening to me?" he wondered out loud.
"Nothing much," someone said as they drew open the curtains. Naruto glared at the bright smiling form of Count M.
"What do you mean by 'nothing much'? And why the hell are you here?" he demanded harshly.
"Shh… You'll wake Kairi," M scolded him, taking the chair from his feet and sat down, ignoring the fact that the lack of support nearly made Naruto topple off the bed. "And I'm here? Your school called me. Since you have no parents, they weren't sure whom to tell of your condition. Why did you come if you weren't feeling well?"
"Because I wanted to and you haven't answered my damn question!"
"Oh yeah. What's going on with you? Well, to be honest, I'm not sure. It needs to be researched a bit. But I can tell you that you're being aware of what is happening to my costumers and preventing any disaster," the count explained.
"What?" The blonde was confused.
"Listen, Mr. Uzumaki. Remember when Malice called you the Dai Yoko?" He nodded. "Well, that is what is happening. You're explicating the actions of the Dai Yoko, who keeps the animals in their place. The only equal you have is a kirin but those are very rare and I can assure you there wont be any problems from them."
"So what you're saying is that I'm working overtime?" Naruto said in a restraining tone.
"Basically, yes. But that's not the problem. If this continues, you'll lose your mind. I'm afraid I might have to… slow down the process a bit." Count M reached up and cupped his right eye.
"Huh?" Naruto stared at him warily, crouching into a protective position with him half leaning over Kairi. "What the hell are you-" He stopped talking, as his eyes stared into single black one. The blue turned dull and lifeless, slowly covered by the lids as they closed and his body fell back hard into the mattress, sending a pulse wave that knocked everything. It was a surprise that Kairi didn't wake up.
"I apologize, Naruto. I know how you hate it when people take over your life," the count whispered, rubbing his now blue right eye. "But your stubborn decision to distance yourself from others hadn't allowed for my backup to work." He sighed and glance at Kairi, who continued to sleep. "If only you would open your heart, Naruto. Then things will start getting interesting. Perhaps then you would stop being 'human'."
Standing up, the count left the cubicle, closing the curtain softly and waited outside, seeing no need to stay.
………………………………...
"No."
"Naruto! Stop being stubborn! It's good for you," Kairi insisted.
"I said no," responded Naruto more forcefully. "I'm not eating that crap. Besides, how the hell did you know where I live?"
Kairi turned to look at him, lying in the makeshift bed that he had made of the sofa, the bed having been too far away when he came home. Since Naruto had refused to stay, with Count M at the shop, Kairi saw to it that he was taken care of, at least, since he refused her offer as well.
"Come on, Naruto! But there's a certain way I like to eat them," the blonde replied in a huff, crossing his arms in an unyielding manner. "And you haven't answered my question. How did you know where I live?"
Kairi sighed. "The count told me, of course! What? Did you think I stalked you or something? Get a grip," she told him, forcing a spoonful of leek soup into his mouth. Naruto struggled but in the end was forced to swallow.
"That's hot," he complained.
"That's when it's best. Now eat up!" Kairi ordered, forcing more spoonfuls down his throat.
"Mmph! Okay, okay! I'll eat! Stop it already!" Naruto grabbed the spoon and held the bowl to his lips, proceeding to drink it all In one gulp. He made a face but said nothing and gave the plates to Kairi.
"See? That wasn't so hard now, was it?" she asked a little smugly with a smile.
"Whatever." The blonde closed his eyes and laid back. "Now leave. I don't need you to baby-sit me."
"I wonder when the count would be back," Kairi wondered to herself as she carried the dishes to the small kitchen.
Naruto shot out of the sofa. "Are you even listening to me?" he yelled as he wobbly made his way towards her.
"Yes, I am listening to you," Kairi replied, putting the dishes in the sink. "I just ignore whatever you say. Like it or not, I'm here to care for you. And no, I don't have any other motives. I'm doing this because I want to."
Naruto held on to the wall, resting his head against the plaster. "I don't get you," he mumble.
"Consider that a good thing," she said, turning to him with a smile. "Because it means you don't see me like everyone else. In that way, I'm sort of special to you, right?"
He scoffed, but his lips curved. "Don't get too full of yourself. And don't go bragging around."
Kairi laughed. "I wont, not to worry," she said and came to him. "Now back to bed."
………………………………...
Before he opened the door, he knew what had happened. He side stepped over the stains of red and went inside, the bells ringing his arrival. The atmosphere was heavy like deep water and it gave him all the information he needed to know.
"I want my contract changed, Count," demanded a tall, blue skinned man whose clothes dripped onto the floor.
"Oh, you poor thing!" Count M rushed to the man's side, using a handkerchief to clean the bleeding wounds on the man's face. "You didn't need to do this. You're shouldn't have come."
"I'm sorry, Count, but he insisted. And you know I cant ignore any call for help from them," a new voice explained quietly from the side, where a figure stood. "And after you supported me at the meeting too. I'm so sorry. But… on his own he would've…"
"I understand. Don't blame yourself, Kyoko. You did the right thing," M assured her. But it didn't served to wipe the look of agony off his cousin's face. He sighed and returned his attention to the dying shark in front of him. "Why do you want the contract? What do you want changed?"
"I… Someone saw me. It was intentional, like a boast. But while I do want to kill my current owner, I cant kill her. She… I just cant. She's my hime, the one I've been looking for. Please, count. I beg you. Change it for me, make her my owner instead."
"But it'll mean you have to kill her anyway," Kyoko pointed out. "It would applied to the same thing. Count, is there anything that could be done?"
M thought it over and nodded. "But I'll need your help, cousin," he explained. "And your powers."
She came to him and held out her arms. "It's okay," she said. "Even though I've enjoyed it so far, it's time I end this dream."
Grabbing her arms, the Count looked up, his eyes both dark as coal. "Last chance," he told her.
"It's okay," Kyoko said. "Now, give me a nightmare, Count M."
So it began, with the animals as witnesses as fate was altered once again.
End.
A/N: Whew! Finally finished. This chapter was hard! Since I did not know what to reveal yet. There's so much happening in this world, my head's ready to burst! So I've decided to make a companion piece. It'll be right after I update the sequel to When the Storms Subside. I know everyone is anxiously waiting for that one. Please be patient! Well, this has been NarutoAngel. Laters!