It was like a jolt of electricity struck Chiisai. Her eyes opened instantly and she pushed herself up, not even realizing the pain that came with it. A streak of blue and silver flickered at the corner of her eyes. In a blind panic, she brought her hand up and hit the person's chest, expecting a gust of wind to send the masked man flying.
He grabbed her wrist, and she tried again to fling him back. Her eyes widened with fear, knowing something was horribly wrong. Why weren't her powers working? Maybe she was having a nightmare.
Sixth Paths help everyone if that happened.
"Chiisai," Kakashi's voice tried to soothe her quaking mind.
She blinked up at the jonin, only now recognizing him. Her shoulders sagged as she took a shallow breath. He let go of her wrist. Her eyes stared down at the pillow, realizing she wasn't dreaming at all.
Her father was right all along.
With a trembling voice, the woman whispered, "You real?"
His eye glinted with pain at the vulnerability hidden behind those familiar words. "You were out for five hours." He exhaled raggedly, "I thought you had gone into comatose."
Her eyes widened. She went to push herself back up but let out a gasp at the sharp ache pulsing through her back. He placed a hand on her shoulder, his fingers cold against her burning skin. "The seizure ripped some of the stitches. It had to be re-sewn."
With a groan, she replied, "So you're saying you saw me half-naked again?"
He sank into the bed beside her, causing it to creak under his weight. "I don't think this is the time to worry over such things."
She closed her eyes, saying with defeat, "Well, it's sure of a great time to worry about everything else."
He removed his hand, also stealing back his comforting touch. "Chiisai, you're not telling me something."
Her fingers curled into the green bed sheet. She winced as she sat up. "I didn't want to tell you until I knew for sure."
Kakashi bowed his head, bracing for the answer he knew he would receive. "It's not a side effect of the medicine withdrawals, is it?"
"No," she whispered, "It's not."
Shaking his head, he said, "This isn't good."
"I'll learn to control it."
"Control it?" He turned to her. "You were gone for five hours this time. What if the next one lasts a day? We have no idea what we're dealing with."
Chiisai could see his muscles tense, his hands in fists. It threw her off guard to see him like this, as if he were caught in the middle of a battlefield. Without thinking, she rested her head against his arm and reassured him, "I'm not going anywhere, okay? I'm not going to abandon you, so don't abandon me."
His eye widened at her words. Chiisai slipped back under the covers, cringing as her back pressed to the mattress. "You look like hell too, so get some beauty sleep," she muttered grudgingly to the ceiling.
His arm went instinctively around her as he lay down, and she nestled into his chest without a second thought. She was afraid, so very afraid of what was happening. But Kakashi couldn't know. No, not yet at least. Chiisai tightened her hold on him, wishing time could stop and they could lay her like this, feeling his chest rise and fall with hers. She didn't want to go back to sleep, all she wanted was to feel this moment as long as possible. Because with him, she wasn't so afraid anymore.
"Hey," he whispered in her hair. "You alright?"
Chiisai tilted her head up. His chest stiffened when her lips pressed to his collarbone. She rested her head back against him and murmured, "It was nothing…Just a bad dream."
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"You don't have to, you know."
Kakashi trudged beside her with his hands behind his head, making sure his long legs staid at a slow pace. "What boyfriend doesn't walk his girlfriend to work?"
"People are staring." She crossed her arms, avoiding eye contact with everyone they passed. "I don't like it."
He bumped into her, knocking her two steps away. "You're dating Hatake Kakashi. You're going to have to get used to it."
She shoved him back with little success. "You're such a-"
He grabbed her hand as she stumbled into him. His eye narrowed when her arm began to shake. Chiisai forced her eyes shut and shook her head, trying to fight back against her rebelling body. He squeezed her trembling hand hard, bringing her back into reality. "Whoa." Her body jerked as she let out a gasp.
He frowned down at her. "You're…blushing."
She blinked in surprise. Raking a hand through her hair, she stuttered, "I just-well- someone was dreaming…Nevermind."
With an amused yet concerned expression, Kakashi pulled her back into a walking pace. She glanced down at their intertwined fingers. His hand practically consumed hers. "You can let go of my hand now, Farm Boy."
He shook his head and stated, "You might have a seizure again."
"And holding hands is going to solve it?"
Smirking, he responded, "It helped just then, didn't it? Am I not allowed to hold my girlfriend's hand?"
He smiled down at her angry expression. They turned onto the main road which was bustling with the morning rush. People paused as they strolled by as low whispers filled the air. Chiisai kept her head fixed to the ground in front of her, wishing she could crawl into a hole. Kakashi glanced down at her and muttered, "You look like you're walking to a funeral."
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure it's mine," she gulped. "I definitely need another aspirin."
She could tell by the villager's expressions they were surprised. Of course they had heard that the famous jonin had finally found love. But this librarian wasn't what they had imagined. Chiisai didn't look all that impressive. Shouldn't Kakashi be dating someone that was more…Imposing? She wasn't even a ninja….Not to mention she looked like she could shatter at any moment.
When they finally made it to the library, Chiisai let out a sigh of relief. Library meant books and books meant safety. This was a sweet place of refuge. Kakashi scratched the back of his neck. "Oi, you could at least try to appear happy."
She pulled the key out of her pocket, trying to find a comeback to shield her insecurities. "I was pulling off the shy girlfriend."
"That looked more like a death march to me."
"Are you going to the memorial stone?"
"Hai," he nodded.
She looked up at him, whispering, "Will you tell Obito about me?"
He studied her for a moment before placing a hand on her head. He ruffled her hair, smiling, "He's known about you for a while." The ninja then turned and lifted a hand in the air. "See you in six hours."
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The ROOT member knelt before his master. "I only have a vague notion of what happened, but I can't take hold of it."
"Like a dream." Danzo's hand fell away from the ninja's forehead. "She has been inside of your mind."
He narrowed his eyes, his fist tightening as he said, "That's impossible."
The cane clacked against the cement ground, echoing throughout the dark room while the man walked towards his desk. "Her ability is more formidable than we thought. We don't even know all that the information she has taken from you. She could be of great use…"
"Her body is weak and she has no ninja skills accounted for, Lord Danzo."
"Precisely the reason we misjudged her," he replied. "Now I see why Lady Tsunade values her so much." Danzo turned to face the ninja. "We need to know her full capabilities. Kasaru Chiisai needs to be tested before we can go on with the plan."
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The door scraped against the floor, startling Chiisai. The reunion with her coworkers Mizuki and Koshuu had been cut short thanks to a group of first years from the Ninja Academy. The unscheduled field trip had given Chiisai the chance to hide in the back, where she still sat over five hours later.
Her fellow employees kept their space for the most part. They heard about her illness only a couple of days after her disappearance. During her three month absence, all they could figure out was Chiisai was horribly sick and needed special treatment. And though curiosity caused them to enter the back room multiple times, no one had the courage to approach the woman. Not until now.
Koshuu closed the door behind him. The mischief in his brown eyes and the half-smile he always carried had been replaced with an intensity that reminded her of Kakashi. "We need to talk."
She sat the worn book down beside her. Images of Koshuu flashed behind her eyelids- a cruel smile, her cat's dying wail, her head crashing to the floor as she saw Tori's broken body-
No! Koshuu didn't do these things. Her father had taken over him…The man before her was her friend. He didn't kill Tori.
He didn't kill Tori.
"Hey, are you alright?"
Shaking the thoughts away, she replied, "Yeah, I'm fine."
He sat down across from her. "You look pretty damn awful, Chiisai. You could use a steak…Or some kale. You're like a freakin' ghost."
"Thanks for the compliment," her sarcasm soaked into her words. It was nice to have someone talk to her without pitying her. It was almost refreshing, but she didn't have time for Koshuu today.
He sighed before meeting her black eyes. "Look, I know everyone's being all nice and giving you space, but I can't take it anymore. What happened to you? You disappeared after that weird sleeping thing and you've been gone ever since. You left us no message, no note, and your apartment was empty...You dropped off the face of the planet. And then you show up dating Hatake Kakashi of all people…" He rested an arm on the table, challenging, "You hate ninjas."
Her fingers absentmindedly traced the old book, feeling the bumps of its tattered spine. "You really know how to start a conversation. I was…severely sick after the sleeping thing. They don't know what caused it. It's taken this long to recover."
"Are you dying?"
Rolling her eyes, she replied. "That's a bit melodramatic, Koshuu."
Crossing his arms, he snorted, "Melodramatic? I'm not the one living with a celebrity jonin."
"Look, it's complicated," she responded in defense. "It just kind of happened after I woke up. Don't you have work to do?"
"Do you love him, or is it just out of convenience?"
Chiisai caught herself from falling out of the chair. Saliva went down the wrong pipe at the same time, causing her to let out an atrocious cough. "Look, -HACK- can we -HACK- change subjects?"
Koshuu came around and patted her hard on the back before she could protest. The pain now escalated and she lost her breath. She shoved her coworker away with a cringe. "Stop!"
He threw his hands up in frustration. "Well, excuse me for trying to help!"
"I fell on glass and -HACK- had to get stitches. Crappy pain killers," she forced air back into her lungs. "I think I'm bleeding."
"Shit," his eyes widened, "sorry. Do you want me to check?"
"No!" She bolted out the chair before he could touch her. Chiisai marched to the door, deciding it would be good to just lock herself in the bathroom until Kakashi arrived. Her eyes widened when she saw two sleeping children just six meters away at a table. Images flickered across her mind. The closer she got, the more she lost control of her body. She dug her nails into her arm to keep her awake as she backed up. Her hand flung the door shut and shakily said, "You know, you should check…I'd hate to get blood everywhere."
Chiisai braced her hands on the table as Koshuu approached her from behind. Carefully, he lifted her shirt up. "I think this is the most physical contact I've had with you in all the three years working together."
"Just hurry up, alright?" His eyes were on her skin, and it unnerved her that this wasn't Kakashi. It almost felt…wrong. "This is awkward as hell."
"Chiisai…" His words were slow. "What happened to your cat?"
She froze, her mantra repeating: he didn't kill Tori. "…He died while I was sick."
Her shirt went farther up as he scanned the stitches. "I just…I keep having these dreams about him…And you. It's more of a nightmare. They seem so real, and well…Yep, you're bleeding a little bit."
"Great," she swallowed unsteadily. Being with Kakashi had softened her stone exterior. And now she even let Koshuu touch her. She pointed, "Can you get that over there? I have a bottle of water on the table."
He didn't kill Tori.
She held the sides of her shirt as Koshuu ripped off a paper towel. His hand rested on the water bottle as his eyes lingered on her. "Chiisai," he exhaled. Her thoughts were so preoccupied with Tori she forgot about her visible stomach. Damn. "Can you just get the water and clean up my leaking back?"
He came around and pressed the wet towel against her skin. There was a sharp intake from Chiisai at the sudden cold.
"Those scars…"
"It's none of your business," she snapped at him. "You weren't supposed to see those." Everything she had worked hard to keep secret was unraveling each day it seemed. Years of keeping to herself were simply wasted now. At this rate, Danzo would figure her powers out in no time.
Knowing he wasn't getting anywhere, Koshuu whined, "Are you anemic or something? You've soaked through the bandage!" He muttered a curse word as the coldness left her back.
"You klutz," she looked back, "did you just drop it?"
"I'm sorry I'm not as perfect as your boyfriend," he huffed. "Hold your shirt up again."
He bent down to get the bloody cloth right when the door opened.
"…"
There was a moment of awkward silence as Kakashi took in the scene. What the hell was Koshuu doing behind Chiisai like that?
Koshuu, who was currently crouched down behind the bending Chiisai, blinked up at Kakashi. "Gahh!" He fell back away from her as the ninja strolled in.
"You did a fine job on these stitches. I'm bleeding again," she muttered evenly at him. Koshuu stood up, hesitant on what to do. Kakashi sighed. Something was always wrong with this woman. "And you didn't go to the bathroom because…?"
"I didn't want to disturb the sleeping children."
He eyed Koshuu before observing the blood trickling down her back. "You're going to have to stop taking aspirin. You're blood's too thin."
"Told you to eat kale." Koshuu glared at the woman.
Chiisai rolled her eyes. "Here we go again."
Koshuu crossed his arms. "What? It thickens the blood."
She responded, "Koshuu, only you would know that."
Kakashi glanced from Chiisai to her coworker, who met his eye with the same force. Feeling the tension surfacing, Chiisai asked, "Hey, can you clock me out since my shift is over?"
"Uh…Yeah. See ya tomorrow." Koshuu glanced one last time at her before closing the door behind him.
"You hate socializing, huh?" Kakashi pressed the wet towel on her back. "You seemed fine with him."
First she had to deal with Koshuu, and now Kakashi. "Are you bothered that he helped me? It was either let myself bleed everywhere, have a seizure, or let Koshuu do it. What would you have logically picked?"
"Easy." He placed the towel in the trash and let her shirt fall back down. "Seizure."
"Shuttup." She turned to faced him. "He's the only one here who doesn't pity my fragile state," she said bitterly. Kakashi placed his hands on the table, confining Chiisai. His eye met hers as he whispered, "He's in love with you."
"Just because he helped-"
"It's the way he looks at you," Kakashi corrected softly. "And you're completely naïve." Koshuu had the same look in his eye a few months ago too, but Kakashi hadn't cared then. He didn't find her coworker a threat before. Not until now, when he saw the normalcy that Chiisai craved so much. It was a normalcy Kakashi could never provide, unlike Koshuu.
She stood nose to nose with him and glared, "Stop assuming you know everything. I'm not naïve and I'm not in love with him, if that eases your mind."
Two seconds of silence.
"Then who are you in love with?" He breathed.
Chiisai squeezed her eyes shut. A memory flooded her vision, which she thought at first was a dream.
"I love him!" Her mother screams. "How would you know anything?! You've never loved anyone and no one's ever loved you!"
She pressed her fingers against his vest, pushing him away from her as she headed for the exit. "I don't know what love is."
Kakashi appeared in front of her. She didn't meet his eye and only stared at his vest. "Oi." He flicked her forehead to get her attention. No, she wasn't going to sink into despair that easily.
"Hey," Chiisai scowled, "What was that for?!"
A book appeared in his hands, and he hastily handed it to her. Her eyes scanned the familiar cover: Dreaming of Love. A smile sneaked its way across her face, dissolving her sadness. "So you found it." Kakashi shrugged it off and placed his hands behind his head. "I was going to give it to you yesterday, but…"
"Because you knew I'd still be mad at you, right?" She eyed him suspiciously.
He didn't answer the question. Instead, he offered, "You want Ichiraku's?"
She raised an eyebrow in his direction. Kakashi was being…kind. "…You buying?"
"Eh," he sighed, "do I have a choice?"
"Not really."
They started towards Ichiraku's.
"Kakashi?"
"Hmm?" He glanced down at her.
She clutched the book to her chest. "…Thanks."
He nodded towards her. Seeing her smile was the only thanks he ever needed.
END
