mawarigoma
spinning top
a naruto trabble by tobu ishi
So.
She's gotten hold of a top somewhere, a silly bright wooden thing on a string, covered in rings of paint. Don't ask me where she got it. Maybe it's her birthday. Why the hell would I know?
I can hear it whirring against the boards of the bridge, but of course I'm not paying attention. Uchiha Sasuke has no time for stupid kids' games. Besides, I haven't played with tops since I was six.
Now they're laughing, dammit, and a quick glance around tells me Kakashi-sensei is nowhere in sight, as usual, but she's giggling like crazy while he begs the dumb toy to keep spinning, just a few seconds longer, he's almost won.
Too late, though--it tips too far and raps its edge against the ground, and bounces away over the boards, and stops at my feet.
Damn it.
And damn her for looking at me with that quirked eyebrow that calmly lets me know she knows how much the little kid in me wants to play, still trapped under the layers of cool like a fly in amber.
The stem of the top is still a little warm as I pick it up, roll it lightly between my fingers to wind it, my skin remembering the twist it takes to make it really hover like a kite, to spin forever.
He's watching eagerly to see if I can match his time.
She's smiling now, a delighted sparkle in her eyes.
Uchiha Sasuke does not play games.
But, just this once, I pull the string and watch it fly.
(word count: 262)
A "trabble" is a brief 'snapshot' fic with less than 300 words, usually meant for humor or to explore a facet of someone's character or a short scene. It's a longer cousin of the 100-word "drabble", and is not to be confused with trivets, triplets...or tribbles.