6: Kiba
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Her lantern eyes trap me once more. She shifts, and her intoxicating scent fills the air. I purposefully drag my eyes away from her, feeling the bubbles of excitement threatening up my throat. This is surreal. She is standing right in front of me. It's difficult to rise to my feet in her presence. When I do, she smiles, like a punch to the lungs, and parts those full lips,
"Okay."
I step back, toward her balcony. To my delight, she keeps up with me, staying close. She slips the weapons into her pockets. I feel my spare knife burn into mine. If all goes well, I won't have to worry too much about her safety tonight.
I look out, and remember the climb up to her room. How could I let a Princess attempt such a trek, when there is nothing to break her potential fall?
We reach the edge, and with a glance at the merciless drop, I face the brunt of her power with the bravest, most charismatic face I can.
"It's a bit of a tricky climb…" she peers at me, then leans over the railing to investigate. I hear her gulp. She stills for a long second, then releases a heavy breath.
"I've got this." It's a whisper. She turns to me, her eyes darker than I've ever seen them. "I've got this." It's louder, now. A statement more for herself. Still…I peer over the edge again, then look at her. She smiles at me, that punch-in-the-chest knockout one. I bite my lip.
"Look, I—" damn. A new, determined gleam rises in her eye. How can I say no? "At least let me go ahead of you, just in case you slip. Its pretty damp." I smile my concession. She mulls it over for a second, squirming as she thinks, and I'm momentarily entranced by her shape. That scent…
That smell will drive me crazy by the end of the night.
"Okay. Lets go." I grin, "Excited?" She grins too, and I'm blown away.
My mind goes blank, like a reset button.
She luminous pale eyes catch mine, and I'm back. I shake my head and climb down the vine, smiling. This is happening.
I look up, and she's studying me intently… Did…did she change her mind?
"Hinata?" Her eyes bore into mine. I smile weakly. She's very hesitant. Of course she's hesitant. She would be stupid if she weren't. Right? I'm some guy from the street that she just met.
This is crazy, anyway.
She's still searching my face. I reach towards her carefully, slowly.
"Do you want me to take your hand?"
She looks at my hand, then at me. Her face is lined with intense thought. Then, she breathes. She blinks, and her probing is finished. She reaches out, and my arm explodes with the sensation that is our skins connection. I cover a gasp. She looks absorbedly lost. I am lost in the glow of her skin in the moonlight. She swings a leg over the balcony, and it begins.
She is really coming with me. This Princess, with me, a stray mutt. She lets go to better grip the vine, and I'm shaken from my reverie. I climb down, a constant wary eye on her stability and footing.
I have a heart attack at every gentle squeak she emits on the way down.
We reach bottom. I'm relieved; she's practically buzzing with exhilaration. She's glowing. Somewhere unnamed, deep inside my core, something twists and clenches painfully. She steps towards me, huge, pale eyes alight, sweet breath filling my nostrils. She's a few inches away, and I'm rooted to the spot.
I have to touch her.
I have to. I must. My throat constricts painfully.
I smile through it, carefully grasping her silken knuckles, and kiss them chastely, but with all the passion I can expel. It isn't enough. I hear her small gasp, and follow up with my most charming smile.
"My lady." She giggles: a glorious sound, indeed.
I bravely continue to grasp her tender fingers, walking with her into the darkness of a back alley.
Once away from the pristine moon of the Hyuuga compound, her breath quickens. I pull her close, and she gratefully weaves her arm through mine. The proximity is fogging. I'm enveloped in her scent, my arm tingling with fire from her bold contact, spreading the flames as I feel her breast press against my arm. I bite my lip, focusing hard on the dark labyrinth before me.
"Where are we headed?" I smile. "To a… gathering." She hugs me tighter, and I can hear the smile in her voice.
"Is that what you wanted me to see?"
"Yes."
"Can you not say where it is?" I pause, turning to her. She looks up at me, and I dive into the depths of her eyes.
"Do you want me to?"
She blinks, thinking.
"No." She smiles, and begins walking again.
We talk all though the long walk. I find myself unraveling, and feel her also come a bit apart in my hands. Who knew a life of such privilege could be so lacking in basic needs; like human contact. I squeeze her arm under mine. The intimate knowledge of her life is a weight I relish, turning it over and putting her every word to heart. By the time we reach the portal, her fingers are intertwined in mine. The entrance Naruto told me to go through is a dusty, forgotten cellar trapdoor behind the ancient town hall, at the very heart of the city.
I regretfully release her arm and wrench open the old doors. This better be it. I don't think I could survive something as embarrassing as, after everything, leading her to some dead-end. Or worse, she could think the worst and use my knife and pepper spray on me, then get abducted running home. I swallow, hard. Yet sure enough, I spot the mark.
A swirling leaf. The sign of the nomadic movement I am part of, to get this great city, Konoha, back on its feet. I beckon Hinata forward.
"Hinata," I savor the name on my tongue, "this is it. Stay close." She bravely grasps my hand, and leads on into the darkness.
We come upon a huge, cavernous room. It's a part of the old sewage system, now vast and long since empty of working pipes or machinery. It looks like it was the main filtering room for reclaimed water.
Now, it holds an immense sea of faces, mostly young adults, however with much diversity. Along the walls, above the shallow pit where the crowds mill, stand my compatriots. I glance back at Hinata's awed face, grinning at her and pulling her closer.
"Amazing, isn't it?" She looks into my eyes, plump mouth slightly agape, and nods. I pull her forward.
"I wanna introduce you to my friends."
The first one we come upon in Shino. With his sunglasses on, even in the dimness of the room, his height and his cover-all coat, he looks threatening and looming against the brick wall.
"Shino." I grin at him. Although quiet and visibly threatening, I know him to be a gentle spirit. Unless fucked with. Then he's worse than his exterior suggests. He nods his greeting, and I notice the faint shift that is his evaluation of Hinata. He stiffens. Shit.
Recognition dawns on the small visible part of his face, and I know he's glowering at me. I give him a half smile and introduce her properly. Shino should know better than to judge based on the surface of a situation.
"Hinata, this is my friend Shino. Shino, this is Hinata."
Shino watches her. She smiles, wilting slightly under his scrutiny.
"Surely not the Hyuuga Hinata?"
Well, upon clearer consideration, it probably wasn't the wisest idea to bring the daughter of the CEO of one of the Companies killing Konoha to a rally against the violent corporate, monopolistic takeovers.
I wet my lips and smile. But she's not like that. Her family treats her like crap. But they're still family.
I, as subtly as possible, graze my fingers over hers. She was starting to shiver.
I face Shino, catching him dead in the eye, "The very same."
He gives the tiniest smirk. A concession. I give a small nod.
Grinning, I carefully intertwine our fingers. She gives me a squeeze, and its like her fingers are pressing my chest, leaving me partially breathless.
"Later." I dispatch and we move through the crowd. I would talk to him later. I turn to Hinata, and I'm astonished again by her presence. She's adrift, eyes scanning the multitudes in a desperate attempt to understand and memorize. I catch her eye. We both smile.
"I don't think I've ever seen so many people." Its quiet, and in the roar around us I can barely hear her. I read her lips. "Its amazing."
Her luminous pale eyes have me utterly pinned.
"Why?"
Next to us, a tangle of people teeter precariously, and I pull her closer to the edge of the room. It's a crush, and more people keep pouring in every second. I'm soon pressed against her, barely an inch from her. To my shock, she gently wraps a soft arm around my waist, under my jacket. She shivers against me. I bite my lip, unsure of how to react. But all too soon, I'm enveloped by her presence, her scent…
I hold her questioning gaze, "Do you really want to know?" She blinks, and nods.
We're pushed closer together, pressing now, and I feel her warmth and weight, and its nearly an overload. She's pushed against me from breasts to groin, practically on top of me, and it's all I can do not to start panting. It's hot in here. She has some powerful pheromones.
My voice comes out slightly hoarse, "This is a rally. Its for the inhabitants of the inner city, to give designation against…a gang." I pause, looking away from her eyes, then back. "And the Uchiha-Hyuuga oligopoly."
She swallows, staring fixedly at my neck. I tentatively graze my hand against her back, and she awakens, grimacing.
"Oh." She gazes into the crush around us. "All these people. They are suffering." Her huge eyes lock on mine. "What terrible things have my father and cousin done?" They gleam with some newfound light. I feel her fingers curl into a fist at my back, and she presses her face to my chest. I think I'm going to pass out. I would never do that. She would fall if I passed out now.
I shake my head, wrapping another brave arm around her waist. "We don't know if your family's company's involved with the more …gruesome cases, at least."
She scoffs. "I wouldn't be surprised." She looks sullen, "This is partially my fault." I have the sudden urge to run my nose across her supple cheek.
"No it isn't."
She looks into my eyes, firmer than I've ever seen her. It takes my breath away.
"Yes, it is. I haven't done enough. I am going to fix that."
As soon as the words are out, the air between us changes, morphing into something utterly electric, pulsating with our ragged breaths. I feel her heat press me more irresistibly than ever. There is a tangible charge in the atmosphere, and my senses are working in overdrive; her mouth puckers ever so slightly, and mine waters. I swallow. I know she can feel the quickening thump of my heart against her breast. She tilts her head. I'm in slow motion, the sweetness building, leaning; her eyes are on my lips. This must be a fantasy. She clutches the back of my shirt and presses impossibly closer.
Somewhere far, far away from my fantasy, a tall young man emerges from the throng around us and clears his throat.
"Kiba."
I release a sigh I didn't know I'd been holding. Hinata floods red and shrinks like a wraith, pressing against the crowd to peel away from me.
"Shikamaru."
The lanky youth eyes me calculatingly, then looks over Hinata.
"So Shino wasn't shitting me, after all." It's a breathy statement.
I roll my eyes. And turn to a beet red Hinata.
"Hinata, this is Shikamaru. He's known for his manners." He grins lazily at us, shaking Hinata's hand.
"Miss Hyuuga." I glower at him from where she can't see me.
"P-Pleased to meet you." She gives the faintest of smiles.
Behind him, a slender pink-haired girl emerges from the press. She nods to me and Shikamaru, and smiles at Hinata. Sakura addresses me.
"Naruto's finally here." She blushes, to my surprise. "He brought a friend too. They're by the north wall. We're all gathered, four thousand familial representatives, with another two at the second and third gatherings. This is the biggest one ever." She offers a farewell smile and wanders off.
I turn to Hinata. "That was Sakura." She nods, lips pushed together. "Does everyone here know me?" Her beautiful brow furrows.
I shrug. "Most probably do, or will assume from your name."
"Is that dangerous?"
I watch her. She doesn't seem frightened.
"Not while you're with me." I grin my most reassuring smile.
She snorts beautifully, her eyes slightly more wary. Her fingers find mine, and another electric jolt washes through me.
Shikamaru surveys us, bemused. "Naruto was looking for you. We'll have to scatter soon; news is the cops are sniffing around." He smiles lopsidedly at Hinata, who gives a squeak of a farewell. He leans to my ear, so she can't hear us.
"You've got it bad, man. She seems sweet enough. But be careful; this all has gotten quite the mixed reception." And he's gone.
We head towards the North wall, my eyes scanning the crowds.
"So," comes the angelic voice next to me, "All these people, they're just…talking to each other?" I nod.
"They're sharing their stories, their experiences and knowledge about the adversary. Making connections. To better fight them. To unite." I grip her hand harder, feeling her press closer to me. "Also, to begin measures that will weaken their hold."
Ahead, I spy a mop of bright blond hair. Next to him, looming a few inches above Naruto's head stands a striking, ghostly boy with raven hair and snowy skin. He looks like he's eaten something sour.
Hinata sees them as well, and stills immediately. Her breathing is shallow. Naruto notices us, and starts heading over.
I turn to her. She's staring at them. I evaluate the boy next to Naruto: sure, he's pretty, but nothing all that special. I remember Sakura's blush, and notice red rising in Hinata's cheeks. No! Is she…checking him out? Or worse; could she be checking out Naruto…? I can't help it, my body automatically angles subtly between them.
"Kiba!" Naturo's booming greeting erupts both of us from our reveries, and I turn to him while Hinata seems to be attempting to become invisible. She tugs my hand. I look into her eyes, and they're unreadable, but so full.
"You okay?" I whisper. She reads my lips, and smiles weakly, opening her mouth as if to speak. She's cut off by Naruto's jubilant voice,
"How're you? I see you brought a lady friend." He tosses us both winks, and upon receiving hers, Hinata floods bright red, blinking rapidly. Her breathing speeds up. She bites her lip. Damn Naruto's natural charm.
"I brought a friend myself, although I'll bet he's not nearly as fun as yours." I can't help my grin, and I playfully jab him on the arm. "I'll attest to that." I turn to Hinata.
"This is Naruto, and this is-?" Naruto opens his mouth, but is surprisingly cut off by the youth next to him.
"Sasuke. Uchiha Sasuke." We all gape, except Hinata, who's flush deepens, "I believe we've met on several occasions, Miss Hyuuga." I think she's hyperventilating.
"A-Always a p-pleasure." I like that word on her lips. I don't like that it's directed at the manorexic model. She's swaying slightly, and I think it's her irregular breathing. I notice her stutter is back. With a certain glow of pride, I realize she doesn't stutter when speaking with me. I grip her hand comfortingly.
Naruto's doubly dumbfounded. He looks, agape, from Sasuke to Hinata and back.
Sasuke stares predatorily at Hinata, and I see every cruel judgment play out behind his chipped stone eyes. He sneers at her. I think she's going to pass out if this continues. Instinctively, my hackles rise and I tense.
What the fuck is his problem?
Hinata clutches my arm hard, with more strength than I thought possible, and I realize I've been leaning threateningly towards Sasuke, and my fists are clenched.
"When were you going to tell me that you're an Uchiha?" Naruto demands of Sasuke, and the guy is immediately deflected by the blond's insistence. A good thing, too. A quick glance at me says Naruto's helping me avoid a fight.
Naruto reddens when Sasuke rolls his eyes and ignores him. "Hey, dickweed, I'm talking to you!" I turn to Naruto, gripping his shoulder. I need to get her away from this guy. If I cared less about drawing attention to the two probably most hated people in the room and inciting a riot, I would kick his sorry ass. I feel her power wilting through my fingertips.
"Shika's spread the word, this dissolves on the hour. I'll see you at our place?" He nods at me, and I whisk Hinata away just as the pair begins bickering almost violently.
We escape the rising steam of the crowd through one of many entrances. She's breathing better. He'd said they'd met before, more than once. I peer at her through the darkness. Normal color is replacing the flush from earlier.
What kind of relationship did they have, to cause her such a reaction?
I won't address this at the moment.
Frankly, I can't bring myself to care. She's with me now.
"So, feeling up to an after party?" I grin boyishly at her, and she visibly relaxes.
Then, just as I start forward, she stops me, gripping my bicep, and looks mesmerizingly into my eyes. My breathing drops to a ragged gasp. What she does to me. She presses her plump lips, then gently, as I stand frozen, paralyzed, she leans in and plants a slow kiss at the edge of my mouth;
Its right on the spot I'd bit through this morning.
The slightly swollen flesh is particularly sensitive to her silken lips. She runs those gentle fingers across the tattoos on my cheeks, down my neck, spreading an incurable fire. I feel a low growl escape me. I cover it with a choked cough.
It takes all my self-control not to seize her right then and there, push her up against the wall, and make love to her till she screams my name. I settle for a deep, calming breath, my nose in her hair, and the delicious friction of our bodies as I hug her close. I grip her hand, awash with the fresh realization that this is indeed reality. Her lamp-like eyes rule mine, and I know I'll never find this feeling with anyone else.
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Boo !
Me again.
Review, damnnit.
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Love.
Bright Eyed