Introducing (drum roll please): The children of InoCho!
"Ringo! Where are you going?"
"Out."
"Where's out? What are you doing?" Ringo rolled her eyes and wrinkled her nose at her sister, striding hurriedly across the grass to try and get away from the sheer annoyance behind her.
"Anzu, just be quiet. Anyways, why do you care?" Anzu heavily blew the breath out of her cheeks, glaring at her elder sister's back.
"Because you're wearing a dress."
"That's a really stupid reason to follow me around and growl at me."
"No, not when you always manage to completely destroy them. Mom left me in charge of that dress and I am not letting you out of my sight." Ringo laughed at the pitiful thought of being forced to watch a dress of all things and shoved the fly away hairs that swatted at her face, annoyed that her mother had forced her leave it down out of its usual ponytail. What she really wanted to do was cut it so that she wouldn't have to mess with it anymore, but her mother wouldn't let her do that either because, according to her mother short hair wasn't feminine.
But Ringo hated femininity, so they were currently at an impasse.
Anzu could see where they were going now and narrowed her eyes threateningly. "Ringo, if you even dareto think about doing anything to that dress I'll hurt you. I'll hurt you bad." Ringo laughed again at the threat.
"Puh-lease. Like you could do anything to me."
"Ringo..."
"Sissy! Sissy!" They turned, watching their three year old sister scramble to catch up to them, tripping and stumbling up the slight hill, puffing when she finally got to them. "Sissy! I snuck out like you told me to!" She declared proudly, her curled pigtails practically bobbing with her excitement. Ringo grinned broadly down at her, proud.
"Great job, midget! Let's go have some fun away from all of those fuddy duddies." Anzu narrowed her eyes at her as they started walking again.
"Ringo, they're not 'fuddy duddies'. They're respectable adults who came here for the same wedding we did."
"We were actually forced to come here against our will. Our parents were the ones who wanted to come, and I think Dad only came for the food." Ringo walked up to the large tree she had spotted on their way into the church and grabbed onto a thick branch just above her head, swinging up and kicking off the absurdly pinchy shoes that had been forced on her feet.
"RINGO!" Anzu shouted, watching as her sister played monkey in the tree. Momo giggled and raised her arms up.
"Me too! I wanna play too!" She cried out. Ringo flipped over so she was hanging by her knees and held her hands out, grasping her baby sister's hands to swing her up beside her. The three year old screamed with delight as she flew, grasping onto the branch as her legs dangled down, holding on desperately and grinning.
Anzu sighed. "That was dangerous." She said, but Ringo merely grinned down at her.
"Oh, come on Anzu, have a bit of fun! Come up here and join us!"
Anzu smoothed down the skirt of her dress, pressing her lips together. "I'm wearing my new dress so I can't get it dirty, and I don't want to split my hose." Ringo pulled a face.
"You don't want to tear your hose? How old do you think you are? Thirty?"
"I'm six." She grumbled, causing Ringo to grin down at her in triumph.
"That's my point! Now stop acting stupid and play in the tree with us like the kid you are. Be free Anzu, be free."
Anzu rolled her eyes and reached up for her sister's hands so she could pull her up beside her. "Fine, but I'm not going to do anything that could ruin my clothes."
They played, swinging from branches and shimmying up and down the trunk, giggling and trying to focus their chakra so they could attempt to walk over and up the tree.
They were all three on the same branch when it suddenly began to creak and crack, alerting them to the inevitable fall. Ringo jumped up and held onto the branch above her with her hands, quickly twisting her legs around Momo and lifting her up just as the branch dropped down, the three year old holding on desperately to her waist. "Anzu, you okay?" Ringo called down, arms quivering as she tried to hold both herself and her sister.
"Yeah, I jumped."
"Tuck and roll?"
"What," She snorted, "Do you think I'm stupid? I don't have the skills to do any actual landings yet." The girl sighed, struggling to sit up and check herself over. "Oh no!" She yelped, causing Ringo to crane her head to try and see the girl.
"What? What?"
"My stockings! They're ruined! And my dress!" She fingered a tear and groaned in anguish, though Ringo only chuckled.
"Girls!" Ringo didn't know whether to whimper in defeat or cry in relief at the familiar voice. "Mom!" She cried out, watching from the corner of her eye as Ino hurried to them, easily eating up the distance between them in mere seconds, even in her heels on the grass.
"Hurry and take Momo, I don't think I can hold her for too much longer." Ino took her youngest child, stepping back so Ringo could drop down, rubbing her sore arms.
"What do you girls think you were doing?" Ino cried, checking them over for any injuries as she berated them. "You could have gotten hurt -and your dresses! Girls, you know I wanted for you to have at least one dress outfit survive a single night." She shook her head and grabbed Ringo's arm, ignoring her wince. "Come on. We have to get you home before anyone at the reception sees you three and wonders at who raised you ruffians."
Ringo grinned at her, ignoring Anzu's aggravated grumbling and moans. "Mom, guess what? I was able to focus my chakra enough to walk over halfway up the tree!"
"Well," She grumbled, wondering how her attempts of raising a perfect and sweet little girl had produced Ringo, the child who always had skinned knees and bandages all over, her clothes always dirty, torn and grass stained even if they were the few pretty little dresses and skirts Ino had ever forced the girl to wear. "Isn't that just great."
My friend has just started reading, so a really quick shout out to her: Missssssssyyyyyyy! I looooooooove yoooooooou!
Moving on now.
Just a short little something to introduce you to the family.
I love you all! You rock my world!