"All men are created equal, it is only men themselves who place themselves above equality." ~David Allan Coe
Chapter Three: Reliant
By the time morning arrived, Kabuto was ravenous, nearly willing to eat the blankets in order to fill his stomach. Kakashi awoke with agonizing slowness, first sighing every few minutes, then rolling back and forth several times, mumbling unintelligible gibberish.
Kabuto thought he could make out the word takoyaki in the murmurings, but it only made him hungrier, so he stopped listening to what Kakashi was rambling about as he was nearing the end of the sleep cycle.
Finally, the jounin sat up and yawned. "Sleep well?" he asked Kabuto.
"Quite well, thank you," Kabuto replied sharply.
Kakashi blinked in confusion. "Feel like breakfast?"
Kabuto feigned indifference, but his stomach chose that moment to make a considerable grumble of consternation.
Kakashi raised his eyebrow. "Well, how does…" he thought for a moment. "Would rice be all right?"
Kabuto nodded. Anything would be "all right".
Kakashi nodded and wandered from the room. Kabuto wished he could force the jounin to bring the food faster, but unfortunately, that was an impossibility. Instead, he lay flat on his back for ten of the longest minutes of his life, waiting for Kakashi to return with breakfast.
When the jounin did return, he came bearing not rice, but a small flask. "Shizune brought over some medicine for you," Kakashi said. "You need to take it on an empty stomach. And you can't eat for another two hours after you take it."
Kabuto closed his eyes. "Fine." he said, willing his stomach not to digest itself. After taking the medicine, Kabuto found himself feeling drowsy, and quickly drifted off to sleep.
Kabuto awoke to the aroma of yakitori wafting through the doorway of Kakashi's bedroom. Food, he thought frantically. I need food. Now!
Kakashi poked his head in the doorway. "Oh, you're awake. Hungry?"
"Ravenous," Kabuto replied, before he could stop himself.
Kakashi nodded, and returned a moment later with a large bowl of rice, a plate of yakitori, and a bowl of sliced peaches, setting it on the nightstand beside the bed. "Can you sit up?" he asked Kabuto. Kabuto attempted to sit up three times before Kakashi walked over and helped him sit up. "You could ask for help," he said chidingly.
Kabuto scowled. I will not become reliant on anyone, he thought bitterly, reaching for the food, only to find he couldn't reach it. He stretched his arm out farther, and managed to snag the corner of the tray with his index finger. But it just scooted back when he tried to get a better grip, and he leaned farther out, only to topple over, and out of the bed.
Kakashi sighed. "You know, there's this new fad I've heard about recently. It's called asking for help instead of just helping yourself. You should try it, it's really been catching on."
From the floor, Kabuto struggled to lift himself up. He was shaking from the exertion, and most likely hunger as well.
Kakashi stood back and waited. While he wished he could help the boy, what Kabuto need right now was to learn to trust the people of Konoha, and accept their assistance. If Kabuto went through life taking everything Kakashi did for him for granted, his situation would never improve.
Kabuto moaned, once more struggling to rise. Again, his torso dropped to the floor as his arms buckled beneath him. Panting heavily, Kabuto tried again, barely rising before dropping back to the floor, too weary to try again.
Still, Kakashi waited.
"Help me," Kabuto snarled, hating himself for saying it.
Kakashi paused momentarily, then shrugged. Perhaps he would teach Kabuto the "magic word" later. He knelt beside the boy and hefted him up, back into the bed and settled him in an upright position before handing him the food.
Kabuto tore into the food with vigor, mumbling something that sounded like "itadakimasu" as he packed his mouth with rice. Kakashi watched with detached amusement as the boy wolfed down his food in a matter of minutes.
Once finished, Kabuto set down his chopsticks decisively and looked at Kakashi. "I'm done," he simply said.
Kakashi nodded and took the tray, walking from the room.
"Gochisou-sama deshita," Kabuto muttered.
Kakashi poked his head back into the room. "You're welcome."
Kabuto scowled.
A/N: ... yay!