Hi, and welcome back to Secrets of the Soul Spiral

This chapter takes us a few years back in time, and that's only because I want a few small facts to be established and wrote scenes for them, instead of including the same information organically in the story. Such a cop-out, I know.

I've rewritten this chapter twice, but it's still not perfect, sorry about that. But hey, if you're here for more Nara Shikako, brace yourself.

Cross-posted from Ao3

Secrets of the Soul Spiral

Chapter II

Memory: The Deer Siblings

Uzumaki & Potter

My life and dreams were always intermixed. The tangled mess was difficult to understand and even more difficult to explain. Eventually I got used to it, but it was not so easy when I was little. During my early childhood, the constant changing of my world seemed a completely indecipherable mystery...

Counting time was tedious, understanding deadlines or even the basic calendar was painful. It didn't help that the seasons would differ constantly between Konoha and Surrey, and there was an occasional drift caused by my sleep schedule.

I constantly lost track of what was going on even after the shortest of naps, for the dream-world would come to claim me every single time I closed my eyes.

One of my strongest memories, a day I would treasure for years to come, happened not long after I celebrated my fourth birthday with the old man. The short birthday celebration in the Hokage tower ended with ramen, where I tried to explain my experience to Jiji between the bowls, but his insights got me even more confused.

Sometime during that fourth birthday meal, Jiji realized that my particular reincarnation mess was quite extraordinary, and assigned me my first A-rank mission of keeping the exact details a secret as much as possible. Which was especially easy with the parts I just didn't understand, and as for other bits, I didn't have anyone to tell the truth to anyway.

Soon after that celebration, perhaps as an additional belated birthday gift, I got to move out of the orphanage, and was assigned my own flat on the top floor of an older apartment building. Combined with getting assigned an A-rank, it felt like an amazing promotion. For weeks, I thought myself one of the few fabled geniuses of Konoha, but that delusion didn't last.

In the orphanage, I didn't have any friends. There were reasons for it, but at the time I had no idea why I was a pariah. In England, I could only spend time with my supposed cousin, but there was no love lost between us. There, I hadn't been allowed outside to even try and meet anyone, much less make a friend.

It wouldn't have worked out anyway. I quickly picked up the two languages in my life - even when both were quite opposite from each other. This didn't prove useful in the slightest. I had a difficult time separating the two languages in my early childhood, which led to some misunderstandings.

I had scared a lot of people by breaking into an unknown tongue for them. My supposed aunt and uncle were convinced of my evil heritage, and the staff at the orphanage thought I was possessed or something to that nature and kept their distance. In short, it wasn't very pleasant.

When I moved to my own apartment, my otherworldly self was still in a state of constant warfare with my supposed relatives over the sleeping arrangements. My supposed family wanted me to stay out of sight, locked in a small storage room under the stairs. I wanted to live somewhere else entirely. We clashed.

Our disagreement led to no less than two fires and one flooded bathroom, and that dream-war would continue for a long while after I had gotten the Konoha apartment. I think it might have been the second fire that did it, or maybe the way I redecorated outside of the house with a particularly splashy orange color, but that all was still a ways off in the future.

As for the real world, with the shackles of the Konoha orphanage lifted, I was free to come and go as I pleased. I was free to explore every nook and cranny of Konoha. Finally!

I tried to climb every tree, squeeze through every gap between buildings I could fit through, and some that I couldn't - in one infamous mishap I had to be rescued by a passing shinobi who found the whole thing very funny.

In short, I investigated every hidden shortcut I could find. I wanted to see as much of the village and its people as I could.

The people of the village were... cold when speaking with me. They kept their distance as much as they could, as if the caretakers of the orphanage had told everyone of my strangeness.

I never felt in danger, nor did anyone go out of their way to cause me trouble, but I noticed the looks they gave me. I heard the whispers. Worst of all, I saw the uncaring looks of some shinobi, content to treat me with as much attention as a pebble on the pavement.

That very same uncaring look was also what I got accustomed to whenever I was allowed outside of the Surrey house. My cousin was important and had to have all the attention, and I was to become invisible, less than his shadow.

My only friend was the old man.

And then, perhaps a couple of months after my fourth birthday, when Konoha was covered in snow, this changed unexpectedly.

I met the deer twins and-

Let me start again.

Uzumaki

It was not too long after my fourth birthday in Konoha, and I was as self-sufficient and self-assured as a lonely ninja academy hopeful could be.

It was the middle of winter, and Kohoha had been graced by the appearance of snow. The cold was biting harshly, and while snow would show it's face in Konoha occasionally, this was my first white winter. All of the streets were overflowing with snow, various civilians or low ranking ninja fighting a grueling war of attrition by trying to keep most of it from clogging the most important streets.

I do not remember the exact date, but it must have been a day off for the academy kids, for there were a lot of them in the streets, building fortifications and hideouts from ice and snow, then launching assaults and sabotage missions against each other. It was all about playing ninja in an exotic environment.

I wanted to be part of it, but I didn't get to join. I had approached no less than two different pick up games organized by a few older kids, but they threw me out very quickly. I was either too young for them, or their parents had warned them against including me, or they just didn't like the way I spoke.

I turned back to the more reliable passtime of exploration. As long as I didn't try my luck at the restricted areas of the Konoha, the shinobi would let me explore in peace.

Not wishing for repeated rejections, I chose to leave the more popular areas of Konoha alone. I strayed clear of the parks or the more popular streets, to keep out of everyone's way.

Instead, I decided to try my luck with the local forests. Konoha was entirely surrounded by trees, and some of the more distant clan compounds were like distant islands, separated from each other with entire swathes of the well-kept forest.

There, of course, were a lot of roads for civilians to take or even some lesser paths that could take me through the woods, but I wanted to be a proper explorer and ignored them all.

Soon, I found myself deep in the unknown parts of the woods. Unknown to me, of course. The forests around Konoha were tamed, looked after and cared for. The forests were the life-blood of many civilians, who would, in warmer seasons, descend upon pre-chosen areas as woodcutters, and clear them of most trees, only to replant the forest again.

The area I found myself in was covered in a thick blanket of snow, untouched by human presence. The tree branches were swaying heavily under the heavy press of the snow, sluggish and crackling quietly with every breath of the wind.

Sometimes, the wind would pick up, and a gust of wind would shower me in a downpour of snow from the branches. Every time, because I wasn't wearing a scarf, some of it would get right under my collar, melting uncomfortably under the warmth of the many layers of clothing I wore.

Other times, it was me who initiated the snowstorm by pushing a branch aside, or by shaking a particularly interesting tree, reveling in the chaotic blizzard that would ensue.

At some point, I must have passed into the forests in the care of the Nara clan. At the time, I had no idea how and where the clan territories extended where it came to forests. I sure didn't notice any guideposts due to the abundance of snow, but even if I had, I wouldn't have known what they were there for. At least not at the time.

The trees seemed sparser, thinner and higher, spaced out even more than usual - with plenty of space between them, entire wide corridors filled with long shadows. Occasional clusters of bushes formed natural barriers. There was some sort of pattern to them, but at the time I did not care to notice them.

Naturally, I plowed through like an unstoppable force of nature that I was, jumping over the small shrubbery or all but burrowing through the snow to push under the branches of the larger overgrowth.

I was a ninja-explorer, searching for a hidden snow kingdom, coming to save the princess of the land with my awesome jutsu. No bush would stand in my way.

I earned a few light scratches, and on one notable occasion had to double back to pick up my hat which got tangled onto a low hanging grabby branch.

At the time, I didn't know any jutsu, and without even a drop of academy education, I could only guess at how ninja fought. That didn't get in the way of my imagined fights against enemy shinobi.

I had defeated or slipped through all of the imagined shadow ninjas with ease. Nothing could stop me.

Even tearing one of my jacket's sleeves on a particularly prickly bush didn't get on my rapidly improving mood. I would wear the battle-scarred sleeve with pride.

After throwing a retaliatory lump of hardened snow at the prickly bush and declaring my victory, I noticed a set of animal tracks. Some creature had plowed through the snow with ease, leaving a very clear path to follow, and I couldn't not take it upon the offer.

I started on the pursuit immediately. In my imagination, I was going after a dangerous creature that had stolen the princess of the snow castle, preparing for a final confrontation against a wild monster.

I had no idea if I was getting close when suddenly, there was a loud scraping rustle nearby, followed by a sound of a tearing crack, and culminating with a duled sound of something heavy hitting the snow.

Was there a real battle going on?

I dashed forward, unsteady and unaccustomed to running fast while my short legs kept submerging deep into the snow. I still gave it my best, plowing through, snow scattering in all directions.

I emerged on top of a small hill, which ended in a sudden steep slope leading to a small forest valley. There was a particularly large tree nearby, next to which, half concealed by the overgrowth, but very close to me...

There stood a majestic stag, half of his antler crown missing. He was looking at me.

For a brief instant, the world froze in my mind. I remembered.

My earliest memories were in bits and pieces, but it took just one short glimpse at the stag to drag out an old remembrance to the forefront of my mind. The cool pose, the awesome crown of antlers, the immense size... In the memory, my father stood on the wooden floor, towering over me. There was a sound of running water, and a distant scent of sweet soap... and...

I slipped.

I rolled down the slope, trying to grab onto something, but my grip wasn't strong enough. Once, I thought I could, but instead a sharper branched scratch right at my palm. I didn't escape other bumps and crashes, but my right palm burned the most. I barreled through the overgrowth, snow splashing in all directions.

To my surprise, I didn't crash painfully into the ground. I came to a sudden stop, seemingly suspended mid-air, with my face pointing towards the sky. Did I land onto a particularly soft bush with my back?

Snowflakes were slowly drifting towards my face, and the faint light of the sky barely shone through the long shadows of the trees. I tried to move, but couldn't. My feet must have been stuck in the bush that cushioned my fall.

The retreating muffled clopping sounds of the hooves meant that the stag had run away.

"No, wait!" I shouted, but there was no reply.

I tried to turn over, and while I had to push through a strange resistance, I was slowly making progress. With a stronger push, I all but lept to the side.

For all this effort, I planted face-first into a soft snowdrift.

When I got up, coughing and rubbing my face, the stag was nowhere to be seen, only half of his antler crown was sticking out of the snow right next to me.

I looked around, confused.

A nearby tree had quite a few markings, as if someone had used it for training practice. Stabbed and torn, the bark boasted scars on different heights.

There were quite a few bushes around, but none seemed to be responsible for cushioning my fall. There was a clear trail marking of the sliding path I had barreled through, even tearing through the light bushes of the overgrowth, but there was nothing to stop me from slamming right into the sharp points of the antlers - which was not what happened.

I shook my head, puzzled. I had taken quite a tumble, and was finding it hard to gather my bearings. Shadows played around me, in what must have been a trick of the light.

I leaned to pick up the impressive antlers, carefully raising them out of the snow. I had never seen my father lose his - could the antlers, perhaps, be attached back? I did not know what to do, but figured I was going to have to chase the stag and try to give them back.

My plans were ruined by approaching soft footsteps.

I gripped the antlers tight and considered running, but couldn't decide. I was curious as to who else was wandering the woods - maybe they would know how to attach the antlers back?

I finally got a better look at the approaching shapes through the overgrowth, and identified two kids approaching, dragging a small sled behind them, each holding the sled's rope with one hand. They looked to be about my age, wearing almost full winter gear.

Heavy scarves and thick gloves stood out immediately for me, but their winter jackets looked high quality, too, quite unlike the many layers I had to make do with. They both had strange tear-shaped nets strapped to the bottom of their shoes, which let them walk entirely without submerging into the snow.

What truly drew my gaze was the contents of the small sled - there were at least four pairs of different shape and size antlers, stacked neatly and tied together with a light rope.

While their thick clothing hid most of their faces, they looked very similar to each other, so I quickly pegged them to be siblings or other close relatives. One was certainly a boy, forgoing to wear a hat, his dark pineapple-like hair sticking out defiantly, sprinkled in snowflakes. The girl's orderly braid peeked out from under the warm winter hat.

"Who are you?" a young boy's voice rang in a questioning tone, but he didn't seem angry. It was as if the question bored him imensivelly. "Are you lost?"

"Are you?" I asked in return, still a bit on edge. "I'm just exploring Konoha."

The girl looked at her companion and then me, but didn't say anything. She seemed a bit more surprised by my presence, but looked perfectly happy to let her - possibly brother - take the lead.

"This is Nara clan forest," the boy announced lazily, as if giving me this information was a hard chore. "You shouldn't try to steal here."

"What?" I demanded eloquently, and pointed the antler at my accuser. "I don't steal, you better believe it! I'm tracking the stag, not looking for treasure."

"The deer are our responsibility," the girl interjected. I knew what responsibility was, but no one close to my supposed age used such words with such practiced ease. "We care for them and help in winter and they give us..." She paused and adjusted her scarf. "A lot of things," she finished rather weakly.

"Oh. Do you know how I can return this?" I shook the antlers in my hand. "A big stag dropped it. Can it be put back? Glue it back? Is that where you're taking the ones you got?"

The girl let out a small cough or maybe a laugh, adjusted her scarf again and looked at her companion, urging him to respond in her stead.

The boy sighed. "You can't return the antlers to the stag, it doesn't work like that."

The girl looked around, taking a few moments to consider the nearby trees, as if someone were hiding there. I couldn't sense or see anyone else... And she didn't seem to find anyone either.

"The stag will grow back the antlers in spring." The boy was explaining in a bored tone. "But you can't just pick up the antlers and keep them, they belong to our clan. The guards wouldn't let you leave with them without permission or payment."

"What guards? I haven't seen anyone on the way here."

The boy shrugged. "They must have seen you. The herds are protected."

"Hey hey," I protested. "I'm really good! The old man gives me missions! Your lame guards must have missed me!"

The boy raised an eyebrow and exchanged a look with the girl. For me it was just a look, but it seemed like they were communicating something between them.

"The old man?" The girl prompted.

"The Hokage!" I boasted. "Jiji got me my own apartment and now I get to be - what was it - self-sufficient! I start the academy next year!"

"You know the Hokage?" The boy asked slowly, as if trying to decide if I was lying or not. "What's your name?"

I hesitated. The siblings had almost-but-not-exactly accused me of stealing, but they didn't seem to have it out for me. But saying my name would often lead to bad things.

First, I needed to make things right. I would never steal from Konoha.

I took a few steps closer and all but pushed the antlers into the boy's grip. "They call me Uzumaki Naruto. I'm not here to steal anything so you'd better take it! I know the old man Hokage very well, we eat ramen together at least once every month. Believe it!"

"Thanks for returning them," the boy said, seemingly indifferent to my name. "I'm Nara Shikamaru, and this is my sister." He took a few slouching steps towards the sled, placed the antlers onto the others and adjusted the bindings.

"Nara Shikako," the girl bowed her head very slightly. "Nice to meet you, Uzumaki-kun."

They didn't seem to care who I was. I grinned.

"Wait - you're named after the deer," I said out loud as I realized. "That's so awesome!"

"You think deers are awesome?" Shikamaru asked in a detached drawl, but a genuine smile appeared on his face.

"Yes!" I shouted. "I love deer, toads and dogs - but a lot of other animals are nice too! I'm friends with a few lazy spiders and I once shared my meals with a friendly rat!"

"You're loud," Shimakaru announced, but he didn't look too annoyed.

"Sorry!" I apologized loudly and put my hands over my mouth. "Sorry."

"Aren't you cold?" Shikako asked suddenly. "Without any gloves?"

"I don't own any," I admitted, not able to look directly at her.

It was not for the lack of trying, but the best shops catered only for ninja, and the only civilian one that I could get gloves from was very expensive. I thought about splunging on gloves and a scarf, but Jiji wouldn't be happy if I spent most of my allowance for a non-vital purchase. I wanted to prove self-sufficient enough for the apartment. I was almost a full-fledged ninja, after all!

Once again, the siblings exchanged a look. I felt uncomfortable.

"It's not that bad," I said. "I've got layers."

"Troublesome," Shikamaru muttered. "Can you show me your hands?"

I hesitated.

The boy took a step towards me and grabbed one of my hands, turning my palm up. The scratch from earlier was still oozing blood and itching, but I barely paid it any attention.

"You're injured," Shikamaru deadpanned. "Your hands are too cold."

"I'm fine," I spluttered in protest. "Honest. Just a few scratches."

The twins were having none of it. Shikako fished out another set of green gloves out of her winter coat pockets, and Shikamaru rummaged through a small satchel to produce a small bit of bandage and a bottle of some liquid.

I didn't run away - even though I considered it - and had to endure Shikamaru cleaning the small gash and wrapping a thin layer of bandage around my hand.

It stung a little.

Shikako pushed her gloves in my hands not a second later. "You can keep them," she said as I hesitantly took them. "These were a spare pair, if mine got wet."

I tried to respond, but couldn't. There might have been something in my eyes, so I turned to look down at the snow as I put the gloves on.

The warm green gloves weren't an exact fit, their rough knitting iching slightly and pressing uncomfortably between my thumb and index finger, but... For some mysterious reason they felt like the most comfortable gloves in the world. That same reason might have been why my cheeks were burning uncontrollably.

"Thank you," I mumbled, "You didn't have to."

"There's no reason in letting you stay cold," Shikamaru pointed out.

"Maybe..." Shikako began and hesitated. "You'd like to come with us to Sembei-obaasan's place? We're meeting dad there - we're supposed to learn how to take care of our deer during harsher winters."

"Am I even allowed?" I asked carefully, hopeful.

Shikamaru shrugged. "We've seen kids from other clans at Sembei-obaasan's place. She doesn't turn away non-Nara."

"I don't really have a clan," I pointed out. "Is that going to be trouble?"

"You said you were Uzumaki - isn't that a ninja family last name?" Shikako asked carefully, and then shook her head very slightly. "I don't think it would really matter."

"It's - complicated," I tried to remember how exactly the old man had phrased it. "There were no living Uzumaki in Konoha when I got sort-of adopted. It was needed for me to get my own apartment. Maybe."

We carried the conversation on the way. I tried to explain the apartment situation to the twins. Shikamaru seemed especially intrigued about me living alone before he realized that it came with a bunch of small chores that had to be taken care of.

In turn, I might have asked a hundred questions about the deer, and gotten a few detailed explanations. Shikamaru had established himself as a lazy authority on the subject - he knew the answers to every question, but it took some wrangling to get him to explain in detail. He wasn't interested in teaching, but he didn't mind the conversation.

Shikako was polite and friendly, but she was a bit more distant than her brother. I didn't know at the time, but Shikako barely had any friends at that age. Of course, she would collect quite a few in the future.

Her hesitance didn't matter to me. Shikako was my first friend to give me a gift and I would cherish her for as long as she would have me!

Uzumaki

We reached Nara-baasan's house directly from the thick of the forest, without following any set paths, even though a couple of well-walked trails connected to it from elsewhere, possibly leading towards the center of the Nara clan territory.

At the time I didn't know this was to become one of my favorite spots in Konoha. While I would enjoy the sight of it every single time, I'm glad I got to visit it for the first time during winter.

The unusually large house was shrouded in snow, and but a small sliver of smoke betrayed a fire burning within. There was no clear edge where the forest ended and the clearing began, all manner of half-wild shrubs peeking out of the snow. They looked taken care of, yet at the same time a lot of them were clearly chewed upon by wild animals.

In addition to the shrubs, half-hidden to offer some privacy for the local deer, a few portable manger feeders were set up. Some of them were completely empty, but a couple were busy spots, with a few deer eating calmly, oblivious to our arrival.

I closed my eyes, rubbed them and opened them again.

The clearing was still there. The deer were still there - in fact, the whole clearing was clearly marked with what seemed to be hundreds of deer hoofprints.

I had no idea that such a big herd lived so close to Konoha. Had I known... Had I remembered my father any clearer than I had, I would have stopped at nothing to find this place. I didn't dare to say it out loud, or even think it too much, but I had a hidden hope that...

"Amazing..." I mumbled instead of sharing that.

The twins, probably used to the sight, didn't comment, but I saw a glimpse of cheer in both of them.

"Come," Shikamaru gestured to follow him to the back of the house.

The house was divided into two parts. In fact, it looked like someone had slapped together two different buildings. One part was a quite large home for a family, and at it's back, a warehouse or maybe a barn was attached.

The warehouse was where Shikamaru led us. It was full of various things - tools of unknown purpose stacked on the shelves, next to a stack of old winter gear, including the flat nets for the shoes that the twins were using. There also were medicinal supplies and a large reserve of various feed stacked orderly, with a section of treats and slabs of salt.

There also were quite a few closed boxes, and at least a couple of dozen collected antlers. Shikamaru gestured for me to assist with unloading, while Shikako lingered at the entrance, once again looking around.

I continued to pelt Shikamaru with questions, and he was trying to sate my curiosity. I learned that during colder winters, the Nara clan put out a lot of feed for the deer, to eliminate the competition for food. There were a handful of such houses scattered through the quite substantial forest territory with members of the Nara clan living there, tasked with taking care of the deer, and Nara-baasan was one of the first and oldest of them all.

I almost missed the moment when a man approached Shikako from the outside, and I sure couldn't see it from within the warehouse, but I heard muffled greetings and something that sounded like Shikako taking a few quick steps and grabbing someone in a hug.

"That's our dad," Shikamaru commented lazily for my benefit.

I placed the last antlers onto the shelf, and shuffled awkwardly in one place. I listened in, unsure what to expect.

"... picked up a stray?" a lazy man's voice joked just out of my sight.

"That's Naruto," Shikako's voice answered, slightly hesitant. "We just met, and he's..." She either didn't finish or I missed a word. "I gave away my spare gloves."

There was a short pause.

"You did good," the man said.

"You already knew everything," Shikako said pointedly. "Were you watching us all the time?"

I didn't hear an audible answer. Steeling myself, I took a deep breath and followed Shikamaru outside.

Shikako was perched on the man's shoulders, resting her arms on his head. The man was tall, his hair tied back in the shape of a pineapple reminiscent of Shikamaru. His face was also marked with two harsh scars that quickly drew my eye. Even though his expression was neutral, the tiny Shikako framing his head looked quite funny. The image was softened by the man's hunched pose, where he looked lazily off-balance, leaning slightly forward.

His choice of clothes for winter were strange, but he didn't look at all bothered by the cold. His darker shade of green ninja-jacket looked standard issue, but he was also wearing a rough animal skin coat over it, which must have kept him just warm enough.

The shinobi of Konoha were never as harsh as the civilians and I was starting to let my guard down.

"You handled independence well," the man commented for both of the siblings. "I'm proud of you both."

Shikamaru slouched closer and pushed his head into his father's side. He mumbled something that I couldn't decipher, and the man chuckled lightly in response, and patted the boy's head.

Then, he turned to me.

I swallowed.

"Nice to meet you, Uzumaki-kun," he commented lazily, and his gaze was warm. He leaned down to pick up Shikamaru, placing the boy to ride on his back. "Will you join us for a warm cup inside?"

"Me?" I gaped at the casual offer. This never happened. "You're inviting me?"

The man nodded, Shikako giggling as the motion of his head swayed her about a little. "Come. It's just a few steps around the house."

I trudged along happily, as the man lazily shuffled close by. He let me push through the barely-walked snow path, staying right next to me carrying both the twins. To my surprise, the man wasn't wearing any special boots, yet his feet didn't once breach the surface of the snow. Shikamaru was fast asleep and Shikako looked deep in thought, throwing occasional glances my way.

Not a few moments later I was hurriedly wiggling to get out of my jacket. The house was lukewarm, but it was a noticeable improvement from the chill of the outside. I shed a couple of layers, stacking them haphazardly on a wooden bench in the ante-room.

The twins' father hung their winter jackets on the wall, and then gestured towards my pile questioningly, but I shook my head. I didn't want anyone handling my things, and he didn't press.

"Good timing, kids," an old woman's voice called from deeper in the house. "I've got tea and sweets ready."

"Thank you, Sembei-obaasan," the twins' father replied, and I realized that he was also counted into her greeting as a child.

I couldn't help but chuckle.

"You'll have to introduce me, Shikaku-kun," the croaking voice continued. "Brought me a new visitor?"

The man ushered me deeper inside as soon as I had guest slippers on, leaving the twins fussing slowly over their shoes - Shikamaru had seemingly ran out of energy just as he had touched his father and now was moving glacially slow, drifting in and out of slumber.

"Uzumaki-kun," he called, and I couldn't help but snap to attention. Before us, there was a positively ancient woman. She was seated in a wooden rocking chair almost in the middle of the room, a warm cup of tea steaming in her grip. Her hands were shaking ever so slightly. "Meet Sembei-obaasan. Nara Sembei, this is Uzumaki Naruto."

I bowed quickly and awkwardly, unsure of where to stand and what to do. Instead of doing anything else, I just looked around, nervous.

I took in the cozy appearance of the room, it's walls covered in quite a few paintings and even faded black-and-white photographs of unknown people or deer. There was a small table prepared in the middle of the room, with softer cushions to sit on around it. On top, four other cups of tea were steaming, surrounding a plate of colorful mochi. A few wrapped sweets were also placed in a small bowl on the side.

The old woman crackled at my curiosity. "Do not worry, Uzumaki-chan," she said, stressing my young age with her words. Given her ancestral age, I must have looked like a baby to her. "You're not the first nor the last kid of Konoha to find yourself on my doorstep. Not even the first-" The old woman paused and exchanged a short look with Shikaku. "Orphan."

I bowed lightly, my head slightly dizzy. I had so many questions!

"Sit down and get some warmth in you," she gestured and I couldn't help but obey.

"You take care of the deer?" I asked my first question as soon as I had taken a quick first sip - which was just as the twins were settling down as well.

The old woman crackled merrily in her chair. "Not as much as I'd like to," she croaked out merilly. "I need a lot of help these days, but I get more than I deserve. Should I expect you to come and help out from time to time, too? I can pay in sweets or stories."

"Can I?" I asked quickly. "Please?"

Shikaku-san coughed. "As long as you do not disturb the deer too much or cause other trouble," he announced clearly, and took a drink of his tea.

"Yes!" I jumped up and shouted loudly, almost spilling my tea over myself, but managing to keep in it by nothing short of miracle. Outside, I heard at least one deer running a short bit away from my sudden loud shout. "Oh, sorry," I hurried to apologize, bowing my head low. "I meant to say - thank you, Nara-baasan, Nara-san!"

Sembei crackled with her ancient laughter again. "I see you're going to be a handful, Uzumaki-kun," she said, looking slightly past me. "You remind me of a few of my old visitors."

"I'm sorry," I mumbled.

"I don't believe you're going to be more trouble than Habanero-chan," the woman chuckled, and shifted her gaze to the twins' father. "Remember your childhood friend, Shikaku-kun? Now she was a walking menace, but we didn't turn her away, did we?"

Shikaku narrowed his eyes. "Sembei-obaasan," he pleaded as if the old woman had just betrayed him in some way.

"I know, boy, I remember what you said," she replied. It was strange to see Shikaku being addressed like a little child. "I'm just reminiscing. He's going to fit right in with the deer, I think."

The twins looked intrigued by a mention of their father's childhood friend, especially Shikako, but I was the first to ask. "Who's Habanero-chan?"

"You wouldn't know her, Uzumaki-kun," Sembei said gravely and coughed once. "But you would have gotten along, had she lived."

Shikaku placed his drink on the table, but didn't say anything, his expression suddenly frozen and unreadable.

The twins exchanged another look between themselves.

My cheeks burned, and I didn't know where to look as I realized that it meant the man's friend wasn't around anymore. Nor would ever be.

"I have had many different visitors in my care over the years. Quite a few troublemakers in their ranks," Nara-baasan continued almost wishfully. "Some of them are not around anymore, and their stories aren't mine to tell, at least not on the whims of curious children. I'm sorry Uzumaki-kun, I really wish I could tell you more about them. Maybe some other day. You'd be better off asking for stories about the deer for now."

"Troublesome," Shikaku muttered, sounding quite like Shikamaru did when he had asked to see my hands. It was probably the other way around, I realized. "After we finish warming up, I'll bring out some of the deer feed - you can help me fill the managers if you're up for it," he offered for all three of us. "Or you can stay and learn about deer from Sembei-obasan. You shouldn't overexert yourselves."

"I'll help," I volunteered quickly. "I'm sorry about your friend," I added in a mumble.

"Me too, kid," the man said. "Me too."

There was a strange feeling of warmth that I felt spreading through me, but that might have been the tea, or the surprisingly warm shadows of the cozy room, that intertwined with mine in a very comforting way.

Neither Nara-baasan, nor Nara-san brought up their long lost friend again. Not that year, nor for a few years after it.

As for me, I would forever treasure the first day spent with the deer siblings.

Notes:

I'm trying to keep one drafted chapter of buffer, so I'll be posting the third chapter as soon as I complete writing the fourth one's draft, or sometime at the start of the next month, whichever comes sooner.