Hinata shifted Mino in her arms to knock on the door of the familiar apartment, snatching Leo's hand quickly so he couldn't go and investigate what had moved in the bush over near the road since it obviously couldn't have been the wind. Sending him a stern look she looked back up and smiled at her pink haired friend as she opened the door. "Hello," She said sweetly, tugging on Leo again so he would leave the bug he was suddenly fascinated with alone. Sakura opened the door a bit wider and grinned.
"Hey, come on in. Ino is already here and Tenten called to say she couldn't come for about another hour or so. We probably should have thought about how having kids would destroy our girl time, huh?" Hinata smiled and walked into the living room to find Ino laying back on the couch, a sleeping toddler curled into her side.
"Yeah. Even when we do get together we end up spending more mom time with our kids than grownup time with each other." Ino declared.
Leo sagged, practically going limp as he dragged his feet, the only thing keeping him up the firm hold his mother maintained on him. He sighed heavily at the prospect of having to sit and listen to his mom and her friends talk about silly girl stuff, seeing nothing but a long bleak road of boredom before him.
Sakura smirked at the pitiful sight and motioned to the sliding glass door that led out to the back yard the apartment building had. "You can go join Jiro, Ringo and Anzu if you want Leo. They're out there playing." He jumped up and began a mad dash to the freedom that the door held, though he was stopped by his mother's still firm and steady hold.
"Moooom." He wined, wishing that she would just let him go and have fun with the other kids.
"Just a minute." She scolded, hoping that someday she'd be able to give the child something that at the very least resembled patience. "You won't run off and will stay in the yard?"
"Yes."
"You'll be responsible and will come and get me if anything happens?"
"Okay."
"You won't play any ninja games?" He widened his sapphire eyes at her, pained at the prospect of not being able to show everyone the neat new kunai his father had gotten him. "But Mom-"
"No."
He huffed and hung his head, deciding that it would be better to just give up and go outside before she made his sit inside with her. "Fine." He grumbled, and Hinata let him go, watching as he raced out to play. She sat down in the free armchair, adjusting Mino so that he could sit comfortably on her lap, studying the entire room with watchful white eyes.
Sakura smiled at him and waved, the child only watching her disinterestedly. "God Hinata, he looks more and more like you every time I see him." Hinata smiled gently, a flush of pleasure painting her cheeks as she smoothed his hair.
"He is the least Naruto-like of all the children." She allowed, the three of them going on to discuss the latest changes in their lives.
Momo's brow scrunched up at the sudden increase in volume, the noise the three women made rousing her from her peaceful nap. She opened her eyes and frowned, turning her head to look blearily at the new-comers who had so rudely disrupted her. Her eyes suddenly shot fully open and she jerked up into a sitting position, blinking at Mino in fascination. "Momo?" Ino asked in concern, sitting up with the girl to place a soothing hand on her back.
Momo held her arms out and opened and closed her fists, reaching out to Mino and grunting in frustration when her mother caught her before she fell off of the couch, also keeping her from reaching her goal. Ino blinked at her youngest daughter and then looked over at what the child was so suddenly focused on, lips twitching when she noticed. "Ah, I think she noticed Mino." She laughed, holding onto the struggling toddler.
Hinata smiled and moved over to the couch, sitting Mino down beside her and watching as Momo determinedly crawled over the remaining distance separating them to plop herself down beside the boy. She cooed as she reached out played with a soft piece of his dark blue hair studying his white eyes as she pet his face, the abused child just sitting there and allowing her to do as she liked. Suddenly the girl leaned forward and wrapped her arms around the boy, cuddling him close and pressing a slobbery kiss to his cheek and melting the hearts of all three of the women in the room.
"Oh my God, Sakura go get your camera! Aren't they just the cutest?" Ino cooed, clasping her hands together and watching them with stars in her eyes. Sakura walked back in with her camera and started snapping pictures, her heart melting at just how adorable they were with Momo snuggled up with Mino and Mino sitting there with a resigned look on his face as he allowed her to do as she wished.
"Oh, isn't this just perfect? Momo, do you like Mino?" The toddler nodded and tightened her hold, her ringlet curls bobbing. "Momo wuvs Mino. Mino is soooo cah-ute!" She declared, reaching her hand up to pet his hair. Sakura smiled and snapped another picture, peering over the camera at her best-friend.
"Well, she's definitely yours. There's no way anyone else's kid could be that shallow."
Ino waved her away. "Oh hush and take the pictures." She looked over at Hinata and grinned. "Isn't this fantastic? Their names even sound great together: Mino and Momo, Momo and Mino. It's perfect!" Sakura rolled her eyes but dutifully continued to snap the pictures.
"Really Ino, I don't think you should be picking out the wedding china just yet."
"You know, you could stop being such a downer and just bask in the irresistible cuteness of these two. Right Hinata?" Hinata nodded and smiled sweetly as Momo pressed another kiss to Mino's cheek, her heart melting at just how adorable the scene was.
"Mom, we're hungry." Ringo declared, striding into the room without a care in the world, the two younger boys following her lead and acting with the same nonchalance she had, not minding the grass stains or the forming bruises and sweeps of dirt on their skin. Ino glared at the three of them, Anzu coming in and holding her hands up innocently.
"I tried to stop them." She declared, going to sit in the vacated armchair, as neat and tidy as when she had first gotten dressed that morning. Sakura chuckled and went into the kitchen to get some snacks, ruffling her son's hair as she passed him.
"What on earth were you doing? Mud wrestling? How can you get this dirty in under an hour? Really Ringo, why don't you to play gently like a lady?" Ringo puffed her cheeks full of air and crossed her arms.
"Because it's boring, Mother."
Sakura came into the room and sat down a plate of sandwiches and cookies. "Ino, they're kids. Kids get dirty. Live with it. Now who wants some snacks?" The kids scrambled for them, their mother's warning them to grab a sandwich before a cookie.
Mino and Momo were both handed a cookie each. Mino nibbled on his cookie delicately while Momo bit of chunks, filling her cheeks with the snack food as she looked at Mino from the corner of her eye. She swallowed, crumbs covering her cheeks, and shook her head at him.
"No-no, Mino. You eat like dis." She said, grabbing his cookie and shoving it into his mouth. Hinata snapped a picture, laughing at Mino's wide eyes and filled cheeks and the pleased expression on Momo's face.
"That's better." She said, nodding and wiping the crumbs off of Mino's face and licking them off of her hand.
This is just a little something I thought up.
I've always had it in my head that Momo and Mino would be friends of a sort, but all the sudden this developed. Soooo... Tada!
And their names do sound cute together. Say it: Momo Mino. Momo Mino. Momo Mino.
Now switch it around and do it again: Mino Momo. Mino Momo. Mino Momo.
There's more to the story of these two, but I also have other stories thought out so all the parts might not me immediately forthcoming.
Kisses my darlings!