DISCLAIMER: "Naruto," "Naruto," if only I owned you, "Naruto." (sadly sighs)
As Kakashi opened the journal, his eye came to rest on the first entry. It read:
I've decided to keep a journal of all that's happened and what will be since the day that our little outing went so…wrong! If I record everything, then--just maybe--we'll be able to figure out what's happening to me.
Kakashi looked up from his reading and his gaze lingered on the sleeping form beside him. What could've happened to you? He noticed the perspiration beginning to appear on her face. He took his hand and gently placed it upon her flushed skin. The heat immediately engulfed the coolness of his touch; her body was now trying to fight-off the oncoming fever. Reaching for his backpack that lay discarded on his other side, he rummaged through the small, front compartment. He removed a slightly tattered cloth and his canteen. Removing the lid, he poured what little, cold liquid over the cloth. He wrung out the excess water, folded it in half, and placed it on her forehead where his touch once was. Upon contact, he could see her body begin to ease up and her color begin to soften. Convinced that he could do no more for now, he returned to his search for answers.
It was the day that changed everything. It began with Shawn FINALLY agreeing to go to the Antique Auction with me…he never could resist the puppy dog eyes! But now, I badly wish he had. For it was there that I found "it"…or "it" found me. I know that sounds weird, but I swear it's like it has a mind of its own!
When we got there, everyone was given the opportunity to checkout the merchandise before they started the bidding. After literally dragging Shawn through the first few tables of nick-knacks, he wanted to step outside to make a call, leaving me by myself…like always. After he left, I started to move to the next table when something caught my eye…the necklace. I picked it up to get a better look. I carefully ran my fingertip over the smooth surface until I reached a place at the bottom of it that was chipped. No sooner had I touched it, a swirl of different colors began in the middle of the stone and rapidly spread throughout it…and then, outside of it! I swear the thing started glowing! And after that started happening, you better believe I started dropping! As soon as I let it go, the "glowing" stopped. At first, I thought it was just the lights above that made me "think" it was glowing; ya know, kinda like how the "fire" in an opal shines when held in the light? My second thought was that it could've been my eyes playing tricks on me. Heck, it could've even that indistinguishable leftover I ate before coming here!…I really do need to cleanout the fridge more often.
But, it wasn't until this strange, old man approached me that things got a little weirder. He definitely wasn't from around here. He wore this big, flowy robe and wooden sandals that made a clacking noise when he walked. His face was partly hidden by a hood, yet I was able to see that a long, jagged scar ran down his face. He also seemed to wearing some bandanna thing with a metal plate attached to it.
At this, Kakashi's mind began to race, trying to find someone that he knew of that possibly matched this description. However, there were many elderly ninja that could pass for the mystery man…the others, Kakashi had already "dealt" at one time or another. With no real lead, he turned the page.
He said that he noticed me looking at the necklace and insisted that it was "meant" to be worn by "me." My first thoughts were, "This is one freaky dude! Did he see what it did? Why is he persisting so that I should have it?" He then took the necklace from the table and presented it to me explaining that he was the owner of it and he'd changed his mind about auctioning it. "It chose you. It was 'meant' to be." …There was that word again! Right when I was about to object, Shawn called to me and I turned my head--only for a moment--and when I turned to face the old man again, he was gone! Vanished! But how? Under the "circumstances," I didn't feel right about taking the necklace and discretely placed it back on the table. No way was I going to bid on it now! In fact, I was so weirded out by the whole thing that I told Shawn that I wanted to go home… Needless to say, he didn't put up a fight to stay.
"Kakashi-sensei! Look at the fish that 'I'…
"Hmmph!"
"…I mean… 'we' caught!" Naruto proclaimed proudly. "Of course, 'I' did most of the work. Sasuke just stood around and threw kunai at them." Naruto then looked towards Sasuke only to meet his glare. "What?!" Naruto asked, trying to sound sincere with his question; in truth, he wanted to belittle Sasuke any chance that he got.
"Hmm? Oh, nice job guys. Now, why don't you two go help Sakura finish up and then start the fire. It'll rain soon and if it does, we can forget about cooking those fish." With that, Kakashi turned his attention back to the page and began reading the next passage.
"Loser," Sasuke said flatly as he turned in the direction Sakura should be and dashed off. Naruto just crossed his arms and stuck his tongue out at Sasuke's back before he too went to find their pink-haired companion.
"Kids," Kakashi mumbled as he found his place and continued reading.
When we got home, I asked Shawn if he would like to come in for a little while…since our evening didn't go quite as planned. But, he said he'd pass and that he was going to head back to the lab and finish his experiment…sometimes, I think he loves his beakers more than ME! Well, after he left, I fixed some dinner and put in a movie. About halfway through, my cell phone rang. I hurriedly found my bag, reached in to pull it out, and to my shock, retrieved that necklace instead! I was dumbfounded!...and a bit creeped out!
By this time, Kakashi was more confused than ever! He looked at the girl with sadness in his eye. "It sounds like you didn't have much of a choice in the matter, did you? I guess it was 'meant' to be." Those words never seemed so foreboding before. With that thought still lingering in the back of his mind, he turned the page.
I tried calling Shawn, but there was no answer. So, I just sat there and looked at it. It was pretty…even if it was chipped. It seemed so ordinary now. There was no mysterious glow or creepy, old guys accompanying it. I began to wonder if I was going crazy! Then, I made the BIGGEST mistake of my life…I thought, "Well, since it's here, might as well try it on!" At first, it was difficult to find the latch on the chain. After a bit of fumbling, I finally unlatched it. I then took both ends, raised them to my neck and then under my hair, and put the two ends together. No sooner had the two ends connected, a wave, of what can only be described as energy of some kind, acted as a lightening bolt and surged through the room! This same energy travelled not only through the chain to the stone, but through ME! I've never felt anything like it! Imagine a flood of emotions coursing through your body spontaneously. It was too much for me. I fell to the floor and then…it was over. No more lightening; no more heightened sensations; there was just a feeling that…I wasn't alone. But most importantly…the necklace wouldn't come off!
"Sensei! Dinner is almost done! You better hurry before Naruto eats your share!...He's eyeing your piece awfully suspiciously…and if I didn't know better, I'd think he's starting to drool!"
Kakashi just sighed for he knew that they were right. If he did not get there soon, all Naruto would leave him would barely be enough to feed Pakkun, let alone one starving Copy Nin. Stomach beginning to growl, Kakashi stood up, looked back at their "visitor" one last time, turned, and sprinted towards the others yelling, "Naruto! Drop that fish!…Or I'll cut Ramen out of your diet when we get home!"
"Kakashi-sensei! You wouldn't be that…that…CRUEL!...Would you?!" one clearly shocked and worried Naruto asked, all but dropping the fish into the fire.
"Don't push me," Kakashi warned, only "half" jokingly.
Kakashi was right. They were in for a long night. Soon after they finished dinner, the rain began. Dark, menacing, storm clouds poured icy rain hard upon the team's campsite. Their only protection against the harsh elements was the old tree's canopy and whatever they managed to piece together from the materials that they found in the forest. And just to add to their troubles, it was getting colder by the hour.
Kakashi did his best to keep the girl warm…but this was proving to be a difficult task. No sooner would he pull the cover back up to where it should be, she would unconsciously push it back down. He simply sighed and laughed inwardly to himself. He found her to be just as stubborn as the rest of his team. Not to mention, it kind of cute the way she crinkled her nose up when the cover got too close to it…but that was a little detail that he thought best to keep to himself. He also tended to her fever throughout the night by replenishing the cloth that lay upon her forehead with the cold water that Sakura fetched from a nearby stream.
The unconscious girl tossed and turned all night. Don't worry. I think you're just about over the worst part. Kakashi thought as he brushed the few strands of loose hair from her eyes. It was at
that moment that she let out a soft moan and slowly opened her eyes. A little stunned, Kakashi quickly pulled his hand away. After recomposing himself, he whispered, "Welcome back."
Trying to focus on the masked face that now loomed over her, she weakly asked, "Who are you?"
"My name is Kakashi. What's your's?"
"Maggie," she softly answered before drifting back into a deep sleep.
A/N: Woo-hoo! Another chapter DONE! (does happy dance) Hope it helped to answer some of your questions…not to mention help to create some new ones, too! Otherwise, how else could I get ya to read the next chapter?! (gives a sly wink) ;)
Again, please read and review! If you have any suggestions, I'm open to them! :) Also, if you find fault in anything that I write, please criticize constructively. :)