A/N's: I'm back! I think I'm going to try and update weekly or bi-weekly if school permits LMAO. I have about 11 chapters written, so imma do edits and revisions on those when I can. As always, thank y'all for being so patient with me. Please review/follow/fav if u can, and Happy Halloween for those that celebrate it.

Chapter 4: Dreams

Shino woke up in a cold sweat. Shivering underneath the sheets, he could sense that a large number of his kikai were swarming freely around him. He turned on his side, switching on the lamp on his nightstand. The tiny insects seemed to jump at the unexpected light and moved to return back to their host's body.

The Aburame welcomed them, feeling whole once the insects were blanketed beneath his skin. He rubbed at his eyes, disorientation and grogginess beginning to set in. He glanced towards the alarm clock, noting wearily how he was up almost two hours before he normally was.

Lying in his bed, Shino thought back to his dream. Details of the dream before the loud buzzing were hazy, but that didn't resolve any of the uneasiness he felt. What was the woman trying to say? Why was Mitsumi's voice the one that he heard?

"You can't stay here."

His head racing with thoughts, he rushed towards the bathroom and splashed water onto his face.

The Aburame took off his glasses, indulging in the feeling of the cool water all over his skin. He raised his head to look into the mirror, observing as the water droplets raced down his chin. Instead of putting his glasses back on, Shino took a few long minutes to stare at his eyes, clinging onto their shape as they steadied his thoughts.

Narrow and sharp like his father's. He inherited almost all of his looks and personality from his father, from his hair and eye shape to his more reserved demeanor.

But not his eye color.

He could count the number of times he had seen his father's eyes on one hand. Of course, the Aburame clan always kept their eyes hidden because of light sensitivity, but Shibi almost never took his sunglasses off.

Shino remembered the very first instance where he did, and the young Aburame was startled at the very obvious fact that their eye color was not the same. Whereas Shibi's were a dark moss green, Shino's were a warm brown. The same as his mother's, as he'd been told.

Placing his glasses back on, he attempted to go back to sleep with no luck. He tossed and turned, even attempting to flip over his pillow, but nothing seemed to help the man go back to sleep. The dreams still bothered him, making his nerves stand on edge.

Rising from his bed, he glanced at the clock once more. 4.57.

Shino sighed. He knew of one person that was sure to be up at this time. He quickly washed up and dressed before making his way to the kitchen phone. He hesitated before dialing the number on his mind.

It rang for quite some time, and Shino was about to give up hope before he heard the other end pick up.

"Hello?"

"Dad?"

"Shino?" His father sounded uncharacteristically surprised. "Why are you up so early?"

"I realize this may seem out of the blue, but could I come over? I would like to talk about something on my mind. I don't think it can wait."

He heard shifting on the other end. "... Of course, son. I'll leave the lights on for you."

"Shino," the older Aburame greeted pleasantly as he gestured for his son to come in.

Shibi calmly walked towards the dining area and sat down on the floor. He took a sip of his tea, motioning for the other to join him. The younger Aburame felt relieved at his father's nonchalance and sat down in his usual place, finding a warm cup of green tea in front of him.

"Is there a reason you're here so early in the morning, son?" Shibi asked. "Not that I'm unhappy with your visit."

Shino shifted uncomfortably. "I… I had a strange dream last night. And I wanted to ask you if it may have something to do with my kikai. I woke up this morning in a cold sweat with the insects swarming around me."

Shibi's eyebrows raised in surprise. "That hasn't happened since you were a child."

"And it only happened when I had nightmares," Shino agreed. He took a sip of the tea, finding he missed the sweet taste of honey.

"Describe what happens in your dreams, Shino. That should give us a good baseline of where to start."

The younger Aburame paused, feeling his cheeks warm. How would he describe the serious nature of his dreams where he was basically just having tea with a pretty young woman? His father quirked an eyebrow.

"Don't feel like you have to describe everything that happens in your dream, son."

"...Well," Shino finally cleared his throat, "My most recent dream was a continuation from the night before. On the first night, I was simply having tea. I was in a large room, where the walls were painted gold and the air smelled like honey, and I sat down across from this woman." Shino looked down at the old table, brushing a finger through the scratches on the surface.

"I can't recall what her face looked like," he finally continued. "And I couldn't understand her. All I could hear in my dreams was a loud buzzing noise, like that of a bee or a wasp. She offered me honey for my green tea, and that's where the dream stopped."

The younger man excluded that it was Kiba that caused his dream to end prematurely. Perhaps it was a good thing the Inuzuka was there to annoy him that early in the morning.

Shibi nodded, taking a sip. "Is that what caused your kikai to lash out?"

Shino shook his head. "No, it's what happens on the second night. This time, I was seated inside of a large honey comb. The woman is still there. But this time there's a curtain between us made of thick vines. I can hear her voice perfectly, though…" he paused. "And I tried questioning her, but then the loud buzzing started. It was overwhelming, drowning out everything else. My ears felt like they were ringing. That's when I woke up and noticed my kikai flying haphazardly around me."

His father paused to think. "Hm, that certainly is something…You can never see this woman, but on the second night you can hear her. The woman's voice, is it familiar? Did it belong to someone you know?"

Shino hesitated before he quietly shook his head.

His father didn't miss the hesitance in his son's voice, but he decided to save it for later. Shibi continued, "Most likely then, the kikai acted out from the shock of your dream, rather than being the root of it. Similar to what happened when you were younger. It seems strange, though, that this would happen now when you're in your 30's."

"I see…"

"If you do happen to meet this woman, or find out whose voice it belongs to, the kikai may be causing your dreams as a form of warning."

Shino's eyes widened beneath his lenses. "They have the ability to do that?"

"It's just a theory," Shibi replied. "There is little limit to what the kikaichu are capable of Shino. Animals are capable of sensing things that humans simply can't. Your dreams may also be the product of certain changes occurring within your life. Did anything new happen recently at work, or perhaps on a date?"

"No dad," Shino sighed, not missing the hope in his father's voice. "Nothing new. Although I have been starting to take honey with my tea now, if you cared to know." He did not wish to talk about this right now.

Shibi's voice deflated. "Ah. Perhaps the dietary change is also a factor then."

After a few moments of pondering his situation, Shino finally spoke up. "For now, I'm going to assume that the kikai left my body in response to my dreams."

"See what happens tonight," Shibi offered as he collected their teacups. "If you have a similar dream like the ones you've been having, try to note how the details have progressed since the first night. They may directly correlate to what's occurring in your life at the moment."

"I will. Thank you for seeing me, dad. I apologize that it's early and unexpected, but I needed someone to talk to," Shino said, rising from his kneeling position on the floor.

"You're welcome to come by anytime you'd like, son."

As Shino left his father's house, one idea re-ran through his mind.

The kikai may be causing your dreams as a form of warning.

Were his insects really capable of doing something like that? What would they be warning him about?

He continued walking past his house, needing the extra long stroll to clear his thoughts. He saw as the older clan members made their way out of their homes to view the sunrise. It was a common practice within his clan, rising with the sun in accordance to the nature around them.

Before he knew it, the Aburame found his way to Mitsumi's shop a few blocks down. The woman wasn't there at the moment, but he quickly used his chakra to survey the area for reassurance.

Shino observed the run-down store, from the small notes plastered on the chipped walls to the newly planted flowers collecting dew in the ground. It felt strange not seeing the chipper honey vendor behind the counter. He inched closer and saw that one of the larger notes on the wall was a to-do list. One particular note caught the man's attention.

3. Relocate bees nest

The Aburame quirked an eyebrow. Bees nest? He focused on the faint buzzing sound resonating somewhere nearby.

Using his chakra, Shino glanced up at the corner of the roof to indeed find a small hive in the process of being built. Normally, the Aburame would have welcomed the sight, but his dreams made him slightly wary of the yellow-and-black pollinators. He felt the kikai within him flitter.

One small worker bee flew down from the hive. The Aburame opened his palm invitingly, watching as she made herself comfortable in his hand. After a few seconds, he calmly watched as she wiggled a bit before flying off, no doubt leaving to find more material for the hive.

He shook his head ruefully. The dreams were making him paranoid.

"I'm being ridiculous. The dreams are nothing more than pure coincidence. The woman probably sounded like Mitsumi because I have only just met her. Nothing more," he eventually concluded.

Hastily, he returned to his home. The Aburame only hoped his thoughts wouldn't be too invasive during work today.

As the work day went by, Shino was thankful that his dreams weren't bothering him too much.

Not when he was teaching at least.

He explained to his students that the next large assessment would be on Monday, testing one's reaction time and level headedness when facing a stressful situation. Although from the noise level, it seemed that none of them were taking his reminder very seriously.

"What are you guys planning to do this weekend?" he heard one student ask not-so-discreetly.

Another looked behind him and spoke up. "I wanted to check out that new Kagemasa film that just came out!"

"Are you serious?" the boy next to him replied. "It looks like a repeat of the second movie. Ever since he came back, Kagemasa's movies have been kinda flopping…"

Shino cleared his throat. Loudly. "I certainly hope you three over there are discussing the assessment on Monday," he said pointedly.

"Of course! S-sorry, Aburame-Sensei!" the first boy said guiltily. "It won't happen again."

The other two boys quickly followed suit and apologized to their Sensei. The Aburame chuckled quietly, knowing that his students were simply becoming antsy because it was nearing the end of the week.

He too felt anticipation for the upcoming weekend.

"I'll tell you all what," he said with a serious expression. "If you can answer this one question correctly, I'll allow you all to leave 30 minutes early tomorrow afternoon. If not, I'm going to give you a math quiz right when the bell rings, and you won't be able to leave until you've answered every problem."

His whole class erupted in a panic. While many of the students were excited at the prospect of being able to leave early on a Friday afternoon, if they couldn't answer the question correctly, they would have to take a quiz!

"Are you all willing to accept that risk? There's no penalty if you choose not to, you just won't get to leave early."

The Academy instructor chuckled internally as he overheard the young Shinobi talk amongst themselves.

"Do you think we should do it?"

"I'd love to leave early as much as the next guy, but I really don't wanna have to take a quiz… "

"What if the question's easy?"

"It's Shino-Sensei, it's probably really hard!"

"I haven't been paying too much attention to the stuff we've been learning either…"

Shino let his students talk for a few more minutes, writing down the next learning material on the board. He paused in his writing when he heard the class begin to quiet down. The class representative spoke up.

"Aburame-Sensei," he said, "We've come to the conclusion that we'll answer the question."

The Aburame tilted his head. "Even if it means you may receive a quiz from me? Are you sure?" he asked, testing them.

His entire class nodded their heads, hesitance in many of their eyes but a gleam of determination as well. Shino felt pride in the gutsiness of the young Shinobi. That's exactly what he wanted to see.

"Yes," they all answered loudly.

"Very well," Shino replied. "Which of you would be willing to answer the question? Decide who will before I call on someone."

After a few minutes of silence, one young girl hesitantly raised her hand. The Aburame smiled inwardly. Yuna was one of the shyer and less confident students in this class, but was also one of the most intelligent. To see her volunteering of her own accord to answer was progress in and of itself.

"Yuna? Will you be the one to answer?"

The girl looked up bashfully, but the Sensei didn't miss the hidden determination in her eyes. The rest of his class nodded towards the girl, confident that she would be able to come through for them. "H-hai, Aburame-Sensei."

He cleared his throat. "My question then is…" he began with a hidden smile, "What is the name of the Sixth Hokage?"

He snorted at the large simultaneous breath of relief. In reality, Shino would have allowed his students to leave early regardless, but this small test was his means of seeing if they would step out of their comfort zones and take a risk in the first place.

"The answer is Hatake Kakashi," Yuna answered confidently.

Shino nodded, "Very good. You all have my permission to leave early tomorrow afternoon."

The whole class celebrated happily, thanking the young girl. Some were even making plans on what they would do with the spare 30 minutes.

He spoke up over the chatter. "This was a small test, one that would see if you all as Shinobi-in-training would step out of your comfort zones and take the risk of answering the question, even if there was a chance that you would receive a quiz. Taking risks are what Shinobi have to do all the time on missions."

He continued in approval, "You all placed your faith in Yuna's knowledge and abilities as a student, just as one would need to place their faith in their teammates. Keep that idea in mind when you're off doing missions, and I'm sure you'll all be successful Shinobi."

"Hai, Sensei!"

"Good," he said with a smile. "Let's continue on then. That's because it's only Thursday and there's still much to learn."

Overall, Shino's day went rather well. The current mathematical unit he was going over with the students was a bit more difficult and concept-based, but most of them seemed to be understanding with relatively few hiccups.

He bid a good evening to his co-workers before heading home. The Aburame checked to make sure he had everything, holding his work bag close as he began walking. He had a few late assignments that required grading and wanted to get a head start on planning for next week's learning schedule as well.

He took his normal route towards the compound, stopping a small distance away from Mitsumi's shop. To the man's surprise, there was an older gentleman speaking to the honey vendor, clutching two large bags in both arms.

Shino smiled. Most likely a customer, then.

The Aburame slowly approached the shop, hearing the older man let out a hearty laugh before bidding Mitsumi a good evening. The woman turned around to polish some of the jars on the wall, quietly humming to herself. She didn't notice Shino coming towards her.

Shino felt happy for her. She seemed to be doing much better since the first time they met, and the store seemed to reflect her progression. From the looks of it, others were starting to shop there as well. There were even a few new additions to the store, including chairs situated there for customers.

The addition of a new bell on the counter caught his attention. It looked older and a bit dented, but otherwise seemed to be in fine condition. Curiously, he pushed on it, not expecting how loud the ringing would be.

Ding!

"I'll be with you in just a mome—Shino-san!" Mitsumi exclaimed happily the moment she turned around. Her eyes lit up when she saw the man, moving quickly towards the counter to greet him.

The honey vendor's excitement still caught him off guard. He was unused to others ever looking so elated to see him.

"How are you?" she asked with a large smile.

"I'm doing alright," he replied. "I just got off of work and was heading home. How are you doing, Mitsumi-san? I noticed you had a customer."

"Oh! Yes, Takahashi-san was taking a stroll and got overheated, so he stopped by here for shade. It's like my store is some sort of weather shelter," she laughed. "Anyway, I told him I sold honey and other products, and he ended up buying a jar along with some cookies for his grandkids. Isn't that so sweet?"

Shino nodded. "It is. I'm glad that more people are coming in. I see you've even made a few additions to the shop."

"Thank you for noticing! It's not much but… progress is progress," she replied like a mantra as she cleaned the counter. "In any case, how was work, Shino-san?"

The Aburame took a glance at his watch from beneath his visor before quietly taking a seat. "Work was fine. I promised my students that they could leave early tomorrow afternoon if they correctly answered a problem I gave them."

The woman's eyebrows raised, asking what sort of question he gave. Although she praised Shino rather highly, she would feel a pang of sympathy for his students if the question was impossibly difficult.

"They answered the question correctly; in all honesty, I would have been rather alarmed if they hadn't. I simply asked who our previous Hokage was."

Mitsumi paused in her cleaning. "Did you make the question easy on purpose?"

"It was more to give the students a better understanding on the importance of taking risks," he answered. "One does not, or rather cannot, become a Shinobi without it."

"Would you describe it to me?" She rested her head in her hand as she propped an elbow onto the counter. "What becoming a formal Shinobi and getting formal training was like for you, I mean!"

The Aburame tilted his head. "You want to know?"

"Of course! If you're not busy, that is."

Shino paused for a moment. Under normal circumstances, he would have excused himself to return home and finish his work. Free up some of his evening time. This time, however, he felt torn between his Academic requirements and wanting to stay and chat with the woman. He found it rather relaxing talking to her.

"Would you mind if I finished grading a few assignments first?" He eventually said. "I had originally intended to go home after this."

"Oh! I'm so sorry, you're probably busy! I shouldn't keep you then," she replied quickly. "Ignore me! If you have other things you need to do, Shino-san, then please go ahead. We can always talk later, right?"

The Aburame observed the woman, unsure of how to phrase his feelings. He wanted to stay and continue their conversation, but he also wanted to get his work done.

"... I would like to stay and talk to you, Mitsumi-san," he quietly admitted. "But I would also like to get my grading finished. Because the work tends to pile up if I'm not diligent."

"Busy as a bee," she commented. Humming thoughtfully, the woman continued, "You could always finish up your grading at home and come back. You'd also be free to do your work here, if you're able to concentrate!"

The man's eyebrows raised. "You wouldn't mind? If I stayed?"

"Of course not," Mitsumi assured. "You're welcome to stay for however long you like, Shino-san! I was also planning on de-weeding some of the plants and watering them, so I can work on that while you grade. We'll both get work done! 'Two birds with one stone' as they say. Would that be alright? I want to make sure you're able to focus."

Shino smiled at the woman. "As long as you don't tire of me loitering about, then yes. That would be perfectly fine to me, Mitsumi-san."

"Good!" she cheered happily. "Don't ever feel bad for 'loitering' around my shop, Shino-san, because..." Her next words came out in a hush, but the Aburame hadn't missed it. He felt warmness bloom in his chest as he saw the woman dig around for her gardening tools.

"... I like spending time with you!"

The Aburame rubbed his chin in thought. He had finished up his planning and most of his grading in around an hour, but one paper was currently clinging onto all of his attention. Currently hunched over the brown counter of the honey shop, red pen in hand, he analyzed the student's late homework assignment.

It was another low score from Sora again. Shino was growing very concerned. Sora was usually such a diligent and hardworking student. It didn't make sense that his scores were coming back so low now. He wrote a score on the margin with a bit of hesitance.

2/40

"Hm…"

"Sounds like some serious thinking over there," Mitsumi hummed, interrupting his brooding as she clipped off a dead flower head. "Is everything alright? Shino-san?"

He shook his head, eyes still looking down at the paper. "No, it's nothing. I'm simply looking over this student's homework score. I can't seem to understand why it's so low."

The honey vendor looked up at the man with interest. She quickly rose from her kneeling position on the ground and dusted the dirt off of her pants. Removing her hat and gloves, she took the available seat next to the Academy Instructor.

Her steel-gray eyes glanced over the paper, widening. "Oh wow, that's a lot of red," she commented nervously.

Shino nodded in agreement. "This student is very bright and is usually very diligent with turning his work in on time," he said. "But lately, his homework scores have been lacking, and many of his assignments are still missing."

Mitsumi placed her hand gently upon Shino's shoulder. "I think maybe you should check on him," she replied. "If he's only recently been lacking on homework, it could be a sign that he's struggling with something outside of school."

The Aburame turned to the woman, not shrugging the warm hand off of his shoulder. "Do you think so?"

"I don't think it would hurt to ask, right? Maybe don't approach him directly during class, but sometime before or after? He might be too shy or ashamed to physically approach you. I know I would be."

Shino tilted his head, asking with slight worry, "Do you find me intimidating?"

Mitsumi waved her hands quickly in reassurance. "Of course not! Well, I didn't after getting to know you more," she replied truthfully. Her gray eyes crinkled as she gave Shino a rather sheepish smile.

"But those circumstances were different! This student is intimidated by the man he currently sees as his leader and the one that gives out his grades. I was intimidated by the stranger at my store at 10 in the evening wearing sunglasses. While there was a thunderstorm."

The Aburame nodded as if to say "touché". He pondered the woman's words for a moment. He didn't wish to be seen as intimidating by any of his students. He was by no means a counselor, but he would want all of his students to know that he would always be there if they were struggling with anything.

"I suppose when you phrase it like that... I should talk to him—no. I will," he said with a nod, adding it to his mental to-do list. "Hopefully, I'll be able to find a way to help this student if he is going through something."

Mitsumi smiled warmly at him. "I know you will. You're a very helpful person, Shino-sensei."

The man said nothing in response, but carefully placed his finished work back into his bag. He turned back towards the woman and offered a tiny smile of his own.

"I've finished my work, Mitsumi-san." The Aburame briefly glanced back where the honey vendor was working. "I apologize it took so long. Would you like some help with your flowers?"

Her eyes widened. "No no! That's alright, I wouldn't want you to get your work clothes dirty, Shino-san. You can just sit there and look pretty. I'm almost done, in any case."

Shino quirked his eyebrow at the offhandedly strange compliment. "Are you sure? I have more work uniforms at home," he said for assurance, "And I do have a washing machine. I wouldn't mind helping you, Mitsumi-san. Really. Think of it as... payment for letting me stay."

Mitsumi looked up, humming to herself in thought. After a few moments, she slid off the chair to retrieve something from behind the counter. The honey vendor seemed to disappear when she ducked down before popping back up into visibility, a small watering tin in hand.

"I suppose if you don't mind getting down and dirty," she grinned. "Would you be able to water the plants for me? Pretty please?"

Shino nodded, accepting the watering tin. "Of course."

"There's a watering fountain towards the back of the store; you'll be able to fill it up there. Thank you so much, Shino-san!"

The honey vendor returned back to her work of de-heading and de-weeding while the Aburame watered the newly planted flowers and seeds around the store, periodically leaving to fill up the watering tin.

While Shino was never the biggest fan of plants, he was surprised by how relaxing gardening was. As the two worked, the Aburame described his days at the Academy and his experiences with becoming a Shinobi. He described his struggles of getting along with his teammates Kiba and Hinata (whom Mitsumi was surprised to hear was actually the wife of the current Hokage) and how the two would eventually become his best friends.

As he spoke, Shino became consciously aware again of how foreign it felt to talk about himself for so long. What seemed even more interesting was the fact that Mitsumi still paid close attention to the Aburame, asking questions that piqued her curiosity, without ever once interrupting him. There was even a point in time where he stopped speaking because he was worried she was no longer listening.

"Why did you stop?" she said, looking up from her work. "Keep going! What happened to the bandit?"

Shino shook his head and apologized. The smile on his face grew as he continued.

Before the Aburame knew it, he was done watering the plants and the honey vendor was just about finished with her own work.

"Thank you so much for helping me today, Shino-san," she sighed in satisfaction. "I really appreciate it. You really saved me some time."

"Of course."

As the honey vendor put her gardening tools away, she hummed contently before asking the man a question.

"I can't really pay you, but I can offer you a drink!" Mitsumi said. She gave him a welcoming smile. "Would you like some tea?"

Shino paused as an overwhelming feeling of déjà vu overcame him. He swallowed down the unease building in his chest, his kikai becoming more and more agitated despite his efforts to calm them down. A tingling sensation grew on the back of his neck.

"You can't stay here."

"... Shino-san?" Mitsumi said worriedly, breaking his thoughts. "Are you alright? You look like you've seen a ghost."

The Aburame felt guilty for being the honey vendor's cause for worry. He took a deep breath before exhaling.

"I'm fine, Mitsumi-san," he replied quietly. "I was simply thinking of something."

Her eyes only grew more concerned. "Do you want to talk about it?"

He shuffled a bit, moving to retrieve his work bag. "... No, it's alright. I simply remembered something important I still needed to do. I promised to meet with my father this evening. I apologize, but I won't be able to have tea with you," he replied, guilt rising in his chest immediately for lying.

"Oh… alright," she said hesitantly. "Well don't let me keep you then, Shino-san."

Shino shook his head and offered the woman a smile of reassurance. Hesitantly, he reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm fine, Mitsumi-san. I promise you. Perhaps we can have tea together sometime on Sunday, after we buy your materials and look around the village?"

The honey vendor looked up at him and returned the smile, lingering concern still in her eyes. She placed a hand over his and gave it a small squeeze.

"... Alright," she finally said. She gave him a pointed look. "Just make sure you take care of yourself, ok?"

Once Shino left the honey store, his agitation gradually began decreasing, and the hum from his kikai died down to peaceful background noise, just as he preferred. He frowned. Why did he get so worked up? All the woman did was ask if he wanted tea. He shook his head in irritation as he stepped into the comfortable silence of his home.

Nice and quiet.

Shino exhaled as he stepped into his bedroom. He only hoped his dreams wouldn't be too bad tonight, or his father was going to hear quite the earful from him.

The young girl laughed delightfully as the fuzzy bees flew about the flora adorning her hair. The large freshwater stream around her glistened brightly in the summer sun, and she felt tempted to dive in to feel the cool water.

She rolled around in the field of flowers and soft grass, not caring at all that her mother would be cross when she came home with her fine robes dirtied.

She observed her environment and indulged in its natural beauty, laughing as she dipped her bare feet in the cold stream. Her chest began to ache from all of her laughter, but she couldn't stop. She was happy where she was; there was nowhere else she would rather be.

Her laughter gradually ceased and the young girl's joy shifted into a longing sigh. This place would be perfect if only she had someone to play with her, someone to talk to and keep her company. The wildlife and the flowers were lovely, but it would be even better if she had someone to share it all with.

The skin of her lower back tingled beneath her robes, and she felt flashes of warmth course through her. She looked up with squinted eyes. This glen was wonderful, but had the sun always been that warm? It's bright shining wouldn't cease for even a moment, continuously warming the girl until she coveted the coolness of a shady tree.

"You're welcome to stay here," a rich baritone voice echoed around her with the wind.

"H-hello?" the young girl replied hesitantly.

The voice called out to her once more. It was familiar, but she couldn't quite place where she'd heard it before. "If you're unhappy with the heat of the glen, you can find rest in the forest," it repeated.

The young girl's eyes widened as she focused on the dark green trees of the forest surrounding the open field they were in. The rich canopy cast a shadow on the ground beneath, providing the shade she desired. She fanned herself, the sun seeming to grow hotter and hotter.

"Is… is it safe?" she called to the voice.

"It is safe. But only if you chose to believe so."

Slowly, the child lifted her robes and walked towards the dark forest. With every step she took, her clothing grew tighter and tighter, and her limbs and hair grew longer. The ground underneath her larger feet no longer felt soft, but coarse and dry. She reached out her hand towards the forest, already feeling it's coolness in the skin of her fingertips.

She longed for it desperately.

A nagging voice in the now older woman's mind told her to turn back. The sun may be hot, but she would learn to deal with it eventually.

She was told never to trust the forest. It was powerful, swallowing up everything else surrounding the small glen she loved so dearly. Many before her had been taken by the forest, and if she wasn't careful, she would be taken as well.

But the forest felt safe… comforting. It never forced her to come to it. It felt familiar, and a warmth filled her lonely heart as she moved closer.

She moved closer and closer, already feeling the comforting shade on the skin of her hand. All was silent and calm before the shrieking. The loud and powerful voice shrieking at her, filling the woman's ears with an intense agony she had never known before.

"You are a traitor, abandoning the glen that loves you so! For the forest of murder and vermin."

"Traitor! Traitor! Traitor!" millions of voices echoed as the woman's heart pumped faster and faster

The bright sun she had loved turned black as a swarm of giant hornets flew towards her faster than she could even blink.

Everything went black.

In the darkness of a small apartment, steel-gray eyes jolted wide open.

AN's: Again with the dreams, right? Don't worry! They'll all tie in eventually. And you'll be sure to see more Shibi in the future, as well as other OC Aburame clan members. There isn't too much in-cannon content about the Aburame in general (a shame, really), so I'll be sure to tie in how I view their hierarchy and leadership in future chapters.