Neji is now going to say my disclaimer for me!
Neji: Gemina owns nothing mentioned in this story, which is a pack of lies, except Hmai-Li and Haruka.
Hey!
Hanabi liked spending time in Hmai-Li's kitchen
Hanabi liked spending time in Hmai-Li's kitchen. She could remember it from way back. Strangely enough, her most vivid memory was about sitting in a cake batter bowl while her father yelled about something.
Hmai-Li's kitchen often offered a refuge from the scrutiny of the elders (who were all insane.)
Plus, talking to Hmai-L meant knowing what was going in both families, and many past stories she was too young to know about.
Today, she was hoping for a story, as she helped Hmai-Li spoon cookie dough onto the cookie sheet.
Her prayers were answered when Hmai-Li suddenly piped up
"Have you ever heard the story about Neji and the stove?"
Hanabi eagerly shook her head. A story and dirt on Neji! Two for one!
Hmai-Li grinned.
"It was a long time ago, when Neji was about three…
Haruka was running around the kitchen, trying to get dinner ready on time. If it was not on time, the elders would be grumpy, and grumpy elders always meant more horrible rules.
As she ran, she balanced Neji on her hip. The poor kid's mother had died a few years earlier, and now it all fell to her to watch him, because his father was on a mission, and the women who were supposed to watch him had left him here.
She ran to get a pot off the stove, and didn't bother to turn the stove itself off. The Hyuuga could, after all, afford any gas bill. She quickly stirred the contents and poured them into a bowl, quickly attempting to mix in sugar and still hold Neji.
She groaned and set him down on the nearest surface. Neji began to whimper.
"Shhhh! I'll pick you up in a minute! I'm trying to work Neji!"
Neji kept whimpering.
She decided to ignore him. He'd always clung to her like a leech, and he could stand a few minutes by himself.
She continued to stir, trying to bring the contents of the bowl to a fluffy state. Neji was wailing in the background.
Then she stopped to sniff the air. Something was burning, and it smelled disgusting!
She turned around to check the stove, only to find Neji sitting on it wailing.
Pandemonium ensued, as she screamed and yanked Neji off, and people burst in because they heard her scream, why they hadn't come when Neji was wailing, she had no idea, but the kitchen was pretty soon crowded with well-meaning ( and some just looking for entertainment) Hyuuga. Instructions flew back and forth, as everyone tried to tell each other what to do.
"Elevate it!"
"Put ice on it!"
"Call the police!"
"Get me a cake!"
"Put aloe vera on it!"
"Give me ice, I'm getting a headache!"
"Don't drop him!"
"Why are we in here?"
"Who screamed?!"
"Ew! What's that smell?!"
"Someone clean the stove!"
"Bandage it!"
"Don't speak to me like that, I'm an elder!"
And so on.
Eventually, Neji got his leg taken care of, and to this day he has two circular burns on his leg.
" …And that is why Neji wears bandages on his leg."
Hanabi finished licking the cookie dough off her spoon.
She wondered if the tale was true. With Hmai-Li, one could never tell.
She spooned out some more dough.
Wait a minute; she knew how to find out!
She put her spoon back in the bowl and jumped off the counter.
Racing out off the kitchen, she yelled for all Hyuuga to hear:
"Hey Neji, C'mere a minute!"
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