Title:
Life in a Small Town
Genre: Naruto
Warnings & Pairings &
Characters: Yaoi & Kakairu & as many characters as fit into
the story properly while keeping to their ages
Summary: Iruka in
first person, a quick rundown of his life, AU Present day
Status:
WIP, unbeta'd
Chapter 3
I didn't return to finish my spring semester after Hayate died, and instead stayed home with Auntie. My counselor was understanding as long as I sent in the appropriate forms with the appropriate signatures. I was persuaded to come back to the city for the summer and work once more as a summer teacher at the foster home. Having the kids around made me smile more than I felt like doing and I thought I was back to normal by the time the fall semester of my fifth year started as I retook my final classes.
It was during a going away party just before winter break and my graduation that I found an opportunity to honor my friend's memory in such a simple but heartfelt way. Hayate and I had spoken about it before, how our town seemed to be suffering what the news called brain drain. The children were growing up and moving on and the farms were being sold. Many of the families that we had grown up with had sold out and moved. I had told him about the many children at the home, how new ones were brought in weekly and so few ever left. As I sipped my punch and watched the kids run around on the playground I thought how nice it would be if they could do the same thing on the elementary school playground in my town and an idea was born.
It didn't take much to grab pamphlets on adoption and foster homes and even less to stuff them into a suitcase to return home with. I spoke with the matron of the home and then my Auntie who found out when the next town meeting was. That next January I stood up in front of my town with my diploma and teaching certificate proudly displayed on the parlor wall of my Auntie's house and begged for understanding, generosity and even charity from everyone. I told stories of my kids and the other, older classes; made mention of the smaller and smaller elementary classes and how these children all needed homes. My announcement was followed by a complaint about the sewer system in our small downtown area and a request for funding to update the library's software. The town had seemed receptive to my idea, but only five people came up and asked me for more information.
My Auntie organized a 'field trip' and we set out to return to my college town. There were three other mothers with us so we enjoyed a nice long drive in a minivan borrowed from Auntie's church for just such a purpose. Genma and Raidou met us at an inexpensive motel and charmed all the ladies with their polished city ways and knowledge of a nice yet inexpensive restaurant nearby. They went along with us to the home the next as Genma still worked there and had fun watching the women play with all the children who seemed to know instinctively what those ladies were there for.
I had already arranged with the matron to have an adoption lawyer handy with all the startup paperwork and was beaming as I watched the women separately sit down with the kind looking lady and ask serious questions. Auntie and I spent our time with the kids and I introduced her to my crazies, most of which were now ten or going on. A few familiar faces were missing, but my two troublemakers were still holding glaring contests out by the swings. They were actually polite as I introduced Auntie to them and answered her questions as honestly as I'd ever heard either of them speak to an unknown adult.
It wasn't until a few months later when the approval letters were coming in and the ladies we'd taken to the foster home were all planning a return trip in two vans that I saw some interesting mail with my name on it. When I opened the large orange envelope I nearly choked and ran to Auntie in the kitchen.
"Two of them," I yelled at her. "How did you do this without any signatures from me, and you're supposed to go through an extensive personality and home life test and I don't even have a wife!"
She had laughed and pointed to her name beside mine as legal guardians of two foster boys, not full adoption. She'd gone behind my back and managed to get those two troublemakers tied to me as permanently as she said the boys had wanted to be. I threw the papers into the air and screamed then laughed. Through duplicity it now seemed I was going to be a father. When I saw the matron again she only smiled and said she'd personally approved me bypassing several layers of red tape and idiots. I was still in shock, but perfectly willing to do my best and assured her of that.
Sasuke and Naruto were anxiously waiting together when Auntie and I arrived. Their small suitcases were easily packed into the trunk of our car and another box full of paperwork on each of them slid in with sad room to spare. I introduced Genma and Raidou to my new family that night at another nice restaurant that Raidou had recommended and decided to pay for at the end of the dinner in congratulations. They had laughed and teased me throughout daring me to find the kids a good father which caused both boys to blink and Naruto to chuckle behind his hand.
We stopped at an outlet mall on the way back into town and made sure they both had a good start on a full wardrobe and I began to see personality traits of my two that had been subdued or just not able to shine while at the home. They both seemed ecstatic to receive more personalized clothes though Sasuke had an eye on more dignified outfits than the jeans and brightly colored T-shirts that Naruto craved. I made the crazy blonde boy put back everything neon, but allowed all sorts of limes and oranges and one particularly loud shirt covered with red spirals. Auntie just laughed and made sure everything was easy wash.
During the drive back I entertained them with tales of their new school which I worked at and our farm which we would be moving out to over the summer again. Naruto wanted to see cows and goats and ride a big pig while Sasuke scoffed and said he was more interested in what we grew. The two actually seemed to tolerate each other in their excitement to get to their new home and both back doors of our car opened almost before I had fully braked in the driveway of our house in town.
I got out and watched both boys just stand beside each other and stare. It was mind boggling when I saw Naruto grab Sasuke's hand and grin cheekily at him. I pulled their suitcases out of the trunk and walked forward to purposefully run into the little boy shaped statues that didn't seem to be breathing. I had to hold back tears as Auntie unlocked the door and welcomed them home; Naruto didn't bother hiding his as he grabbed her tight but still never let go of Sasuke's hand. The stoic, dark haired little boy just leaned against her until she wrapped an arm around him, too. At a noise from me they both turned and I was on the receiving end of what I knew would be a great tackle with a little training and some growth. I hugged them both and even had some fun lifting them up and shaking them in an attempt to keep myself from choking on my own happy tears.
The boys were settled in and a strong argument began between all four of us. Auntie thought that keeping them out of the last month of school would be an acceptable measure for this year. The boys were mixed on the decision, wanting to both become familiar with the kids who would be their peers and friends and being a little nervous to just jump headfirst into things. Being a schoolteacher I was on the side of immediately placing them into classes. In the end we all compromised. They were allowed to stay out of school for the remainder of the semester and the summer as long as they passed the end of year tests for their grade level. I got together with the higher ups of the elementary and the junior high along with the other parents who had brought their new children home and explained our compromise. The schools were amenable to the idea and the children were all given one week to prepare.
Knowing that the boys were nervous, I went ahead and helped them with their studying in the evenings after work. Auntie had them helping out around the house during the day getting things set up for a summer at the farm, and it was the cleanest I'd seen it in years; she even had them help with sanding and repolishing the wooden floors downstairs. Naruto continuously cited child labor laws while Sasuke just sat and enjoyed the homemade goodies she treated them with afterwards with a smirk on his face.
Summer came and we moved out to the farm. Over the years I'd become knowledgable enough about the workings to take over where my father had once ruled, out in the fields with the migrant workers we hired. The boys tagged along and began learning languages just as I had when I was younger. I quickly saw that Sasuke had a strong kicking foot for a future soccer team while Naruto would probably do better at running the ball down the field due to his quick feet. They both enjoyed the ripe berries, and I got to laugh at their faces as they tried my favorite barely ripened strawberries. Fortunately I was responsible enough that year not to cause myself any stomachaches.
The summer was quickly finished and the first day of school showed up in what seemed like a matter of days. The boys and I made our way back into town while Auntie stayed to watch over the rest of the harvest which had run late that year due to weather. We three males quickly learned that I had retained nothing of cooking while away at college other than how to boil water and wait three minutes for my cup noodles to soften. We became familiar faces in the town's restaurants and Auntie could only laugh as the single female population suddenly decided I was in need of a wife and began to show off their casserole skills. Naruto quickly began sucking up to one lovely lady in particular who made a wonderful chicken and cheese enchilada dish that had been devoured in one night while Sasuke offered his coveted nod to a married woman with a daughter his own age that had brought us a rice and peas mix along with her own daughter for dinner company and some helpful advice for pre-pubescent insanity.
Auntie continued to laugh that entire school year as Naruto and Sasuke started at the Junior High, which the school system cleverly arranged for me to substitute at whenever they had an opening, and the women continued to offer casseroles and cookies now as a 'thank you' for my wonderful teaching efforts. A promised classroom all to myself was waiting for me in two years once the current sixth grade teacher at the Junior High retired so I was shuffled around as the permanent substitute to any of the three schools. I was able to watch over little kindergartners during their first finger painting experience and senior high schoolers during a complicated science lab. I didn't see much difference in behavior other than the kindergartners were able to keep much cleaner.
Christmas that year brought a slightly momentous occasion as Anko sent another card, but this time with a P.O Box address to return mail to. She still didn't want her family finding her, but was willing to set communications back up with all of us. Hayate's parents came with an unopened card addressed to my deceased friend and a request that I send Anko a note about what had happened. A month later Anko showed up at my house in the middle of the night scaring us all to death with her knocking at one o'clock in the morning. I was finally able to get her up to my bedroom and wrapped in a warm comforter for the rest of the night and called in to work for the next day as I planned to go with her to his gravesite. I camped out on the couch and was happily jumped on in lieu of my alarm clock by Naruto, who had been easily picked up and thrown by Anko, who then began yelling at me about how early my alarm went off. She left the next afternoon once Auntie made sure she'd drank enough liquids to replace all of the tears she'd cried over the years, not just over Hayate's death. After that a regular communication between us popped up, and Anko began slowly telling me what had happened to her in a series of long letters.
Orochimaru had acted exactly as Kakashi had predicted and not even looked her way unless he had a 'project' for her to work on. She had quickly realized the tenuous legality of his 'projects' and disappeared on him just as she'd done with us but for one exception. She told me how she'd eventually been tracked down by a weird old pervert and asked if she would participate in a deposition for a case against Orochimaru's ethical practices while being a teacher at the high school he'd gone back to after leaving our small town. He'd been found in a very questionable position with another young student, Kabuto by name, and the district was not taking it lightly at all. She'd agreed and even got paid by the old man, Jiraiya by name. She admitted to not contacting us out of shame for what she'd done. She wanted to prove to all of us and, most importantly to herself that she had gotten her life back on track and would survive that adolescent mistake.
That letter wound up deserving a phone call as I remembered a name from before and also had to make sure that she understood how Hayate and I would have supported her if she'd just told us what was going on. Our conversation that night meandered back and forth until I got the impulse and then the nerve to ask her about Kakashi and if she had met him through Jiraiya. I could feel her nervousness when I asked about him, but she finally let me know that yes, she had seen Kakashi and he was doing good, but her original comment of 'you don't know?' when I said his name for the first time was worrying.
It wasn't until summer that I actually spoke to Anko again other than a few brief letters during the busy spring semester. She helped me set up a surprise return dinner with her parents and a few guests that I thought wouldn't censure her for her non-existent goodbyes. The big night finally came and the boys were excited enough to not run around in their nice clothes that Auntie had threatened them with earfuls of deviousness should they ruin. I had the privilege of laughing outrageously at them as they sat quietly and said nothing to anybody or each other while we adults chatted while waiting for the guest of honor to show.
Anko finally arrived with two in tow, one unfamiliar old man with wide shoulders and shockingly white hair she introduced as Jiraiya, and a familiar face with a few changes. Anko had brought Kakashi back and I didn't know what type of expression to return to her hesitant glances my way much less his. He looked good, fabulous, stupendous in a dark grey suit; like he belonged in the city he was visiting from, but it was the changes about him that I found the most fascinating. Unfortunately there were two pairs of curious eyes that were sitting to my right that found my lack of conversation and obvious overuse of stares to be anxiously nerve-wracking. Sasuke and Naruto finally started whispering and nudging each other until Sasuke was designated the speaker and finally asked me a hushed question in as bored a tone as the boy could ever produce.
"Hey, Iruka, Naruto wants to know if that man is going to be our new daddy."
I'd never hidden my preferences from the boys and knew they were aware of them as much as they knew I wasn't actively going out on dates or even looking, but to have my two 'sons' confront me in such a way at a nicely set table with my first love sitting across and three chairs down from me was a bit unsettling. I was able to not shout at them, but my glare promised retribution beyond anything they had ever experienced, and I later got a whispered question from Anko's mother on the fun colors my face had turned. I blamed it on an unexpected walnut.
It wasn't until later that night that I felt I could safely return to my casual perusal of Kakashi and his changes and then it could only be from memory as Anko, Jiriaya and he had returned to their rooms at the local motel. He was thinner than when I'd last seen him, possibly even paler and definitely more worn. He was also wearing a high turtle necked shirt under his jacket in the near summer temperatures and a soft looking cloth wrapped around his head to hide his left eye even though it didn't conceal the last bit of scar running down his cheek or a few other long since healed over scratches along his jaw. He'd obviously been in something destructive and a car accident was the first thing to come to mind. My mind continued to mull over the changes and what might have caused them until Anko threw rocks at my window like a ten year old and I let her in for some doctored coffee and a long overdue conversation.
She told me as much as she knew, which turned out to be a pretty good amount. Jiraiya had adopted her into his 'family of degenerates' as he called them all. He hadn't been in an accident, but an explosion at Orochimaru's high school. The district thought the boy, Kabuto had set it up as a way to enact revenge for Kakashi's part in exposing his and Orochimaru's actions. Several chemicals had been misplaced in the closet allowing them to react explosively together once the proper temperature had been reached. She'd only been around for the last two years of his therapy, but could honestly tell me in a low voice that he'd just fully remembered me tonight even though he'd asked quickly forgotten questions before this.
I was surprised my coffee cup didn't implode due to how tight my hands were holding it. She apologized and apologized over and over again while I kept telling her it wasn't her fault. I almost choked when she explained how the lawyers in Orochimaru's case had used her testimony, and several interesting pictures to lead the jury in their correct belief that Orochimaru had hurried out of our town only to meet up with Kabuto again and then continue an ongoing relationship with the young boy. I told her what had happened on my end in order to get the timing correct in my head, and she explained that the explosion had happened early in the fall semester. Kabuto and Orochimaru had been found during early summer classes; Kakashi had been the one to find them and immediately complain to the district. During the fall out directly before school, Jiraiya and him had gone on a trip to get Kakashi out of the spotlight, but it gave Kabuto time to plan.
She tried giving me some good news to cheer me up before bed, which we both wound up avoiding that night. His eye wasn't gone completely, but discolored and affected in such a way that he got horrendous migraines after exposing it to light for too long. Eventually he might be able to do away with the eye-patch altogether, but the doctors didn't think that would happen for a few more years. He'd never lost any physical mobility, but the blast had knocked him into a six month coma and required some fancy renetworking on his brain's part once he'd awoken with his memories intact, but seriously scrambled. He still had minor problems with short term memory and would probably continue to do so, but his long term memories were all coming back with image, sound and smell prompting. He'd started asking and then answering questions about his year in our town and shut up quickly when she asked him what he remembered about me. I grinned at her as she teased me and we were able to greet the dawn with smiles on our faces instead of frowns.
The fancy dinner had been on a Friday night and the three out-of-towners weren't scheduled to fly back home until Sunday evening. Auntie had them all over for Saturday lunch while Anko's parents worked at their small grocery store in town, and I was able to finally look Kakashi in the eye and smile easily. Then Naruto and Sasuke demanded attention through a badly thrown football and the festivities were off to a great start as Anko began demonstrating her superior skills in tackle football against eleven year olds. The weather had given in to Auntie's enjoyment of a good game of mudball and all four of us required hosing off and showers before we were served sandwiches and potato salad.
Kakashi stayed quiet most of the afternoon but answered confidently whenever Jiraiya brought him into the conversation. Auntie had obviously been told what happened as she didn't say a thing about his lack of phone calls or sudden change in demeanor. She wasn't even showing any interest in the history between Kakashi and I until near dinner; which Jiraiya and Kakashi were invited to stay for while Anko was frowned into submissively walking to her parent's house to eat there and endure a private speaking to that we all knew she was trying to avoid.
Once Anko had left, Kakashi and I were shuffled into the kitchen and set to cleaning, chopping and doing everything except apply heat to the many ingredients for one of Auntie's roasts. I knew dinner was going to be late so I had the temerity to pop open some easy bake croissants and wonder at how to roll them for a quick appetizer knowing the boys would be hungry even before the open preheated. As I glared at the directions that had always baffled me I was surprised to feel a breath against my cheek. Kakashi had leaned over and was staring down at the now empty container with the same level of ferocity as I was. After assuring him that the biscuits had done nothing to offend me he'd quickly taken over and deftly rolled the little triangles of chilled dough into plump looking croissant shapes ready to be cooked in fifteen minutes or less.
I returned to washing and chopping the colorful vegetables Auntie had placed on the table while Kakashi went after the tiny sprigs of stuff she'd ordered him to finely dice and mash and turn into powder if their final look was anything to go by. I got to laugh at him as he vainly tried to wash the herby smell off his hands until I was fiercely glared at. I then straightened up and explained that the soap was a handmade specialty Auntie bought in town scented with rosemary. I assured him it smelled fine and even grabbed his wrist and took a sniff. He smelled just fine to me, absolutely perfect. I even washed my own hands in the soap after I was done and allowed him to reassure himself that the smell was not girly by smelling my well scrubbed hands; the twinkle in his exposed eye made me blush and the brief glimpse of bright hair through the kitchen window when I turned my eyes away had me immediately about facing and running to the screen door that separated the kitchen from the prison of the back porch where the boys had been confined with a board game. I was able to easily and knowingly place my hand over Naruto's mouth before he blurted any more daddy words and apologized while dragging him back out onto the porch.
When I returned into the kitchen after a hushed argument with my rambunctious son I found Jiraiya and Kakashi ensconced at the table with warm croissants and iced tea while Auntie mysteriously mixed ingredients and began applying the proper amount of heat to cook dinner and not burn the house down. She tossed me a mischevious old lady grin and asked if I'd whipped the boy properly. Naruto, being the quick rodent he was, immediately began making the appropriate pain filled and pleading noises. He then began to recite the child abuse laws and I turned around to loudly threaten him with my own extensive knowledge of them and exactly why I knew how to get around them. He went and hid beside Sasuke who was ignoring all of us for his complicated game of solitaire. Jiraiya was laughing at us and promptly chimed in with a few fun stories of Kakashi when he was younger and possibly more brat-like than Naruto was being.
It was odd sitting there listening intently to stories about a person's childhood when that same person was listening just as hard. I kept wanting to ask Kakashi what he remembered of those tales, but managed just to laugh with everybody at the many reasons he'd given why the family needed a dog instead of a cat, namely the untenable paradox he'd be forced to experiment about regarding buttered bread and cats always landing on their feet. His father had given in after Kakashi had casually mentioned how extremely high up their fourth floor apartment was; a dog was quickly acquired for the small family. Kakashi was able to tell stories about his dog Pakuun and Auntie laughed and told the story about my huge fish. I watched as Kakashi's eyes widened at that story and then glanced my way. He grinned wide and said he remembered me telling him about that. I hid my face in my hands and complained that both Kakashi and I were too old to be brought low with such stories; then I turned the tables and cheerfully told everyone how Auntie had caught her husband so many years ago. Kakashi made me blush when he bravely turned to Auntie afterwards and accused her of giving me ideas, but the pleased smirk on her face had everyone laughing. The teasing went back and forth until Sasuke requested Auntie's expert advice over his card game and all six of us wound up playing rummy until dinner was ready. Auntie was the final winner with Sasuke, her little card shark protégée coming in a close second. Naruto and I were both able to groan over our lack of points and losing status until we were hushed by the order to clean the dishes after dinner for whining.
When the boys were sent to bed, late as a surprise due to company, I was grilled on how I'd become such a young father. Jiraiya asked me all about my college years and if I still looked forward to teaching every day. He finally confessed to being the principal at a school and always on the look out for new and pleasant teachers. I told him I didn't plan on moving away from town ever. He smiled and nodded saying the small country schools offered up some of the best teachers he'd ever seen and then complimented me on my district's grades and sports programs which Kakashi later explained was just an attempt at buttering me into thinking nicely of him. It wasn't until the next night when Jiraiya took me aside that I really understood why the old man would have wanted me to think fondly of him.
Anko had grabbed Kakashi into helping her teach the boys how to play poker not knowing that Auntie had already graduated Sasuke on that game. They both lost their cookies faster than Naruto, but it gave Jiraiya time and excuse to talk to me when I declined to participate knowing how good the boys were. He then asked me some hard questions and offered me some even harder realizations. I'd moved on with my life after Kakashi and, yes he did know about what had happened. He wanted me to realize that due to the injury Kakashi hadn't moved on and what exactly were my intentions now that I knew the man hadn't dropped me as a one night stand as soon as he moved away.
Within seconds I knew what I wanted to say and knew it was right. I'd moved on, yes, but I had a lot to move me; and just because I had moved on didn't mean I'd forgotten. I'd even explained to Kakashi that night about how I had to put my life in order. I truly believed that had I had access to him I would have done what I could have to keep us in contact even if distance forced some unpleasant ideas on either of us. Jiraiya kept quiet as I told him that maybe I wouldn't have made what mistakes I had if I'd still had Kakashi around, but that having made those mistakes I knew I was a better adult for them. My first love had drifted away from me not because of anything bad, but just because he was out of sight, and as the old saying went, out of sight, out of mind. I spoke very plainly to Jiraiya that if Kakashi was willing to have me back in his mind then I was perfectly willing to have him back in mine. The old man sighed and smiled then made a suggestion I never would have thought of actually doing, but maybe would have dreamed.
Jiraiya wanted me to invite Kakashi to spend some time out here in the country with us. He'd been years stuck in the city and its fast paced life knowing he couldn't be a part of it again just yet, and Jiraiya could see him cracking. He'd even done research on our small town hospital and found that any specialist or therapist Kakashi might need to see while he was there would be easily welcomed due to policies put in place during Hayate's lifetime of various and ever changing doctors. Jiraiya thought that Kakashi needed a place where he could do his final bits of healing and a berry farm in the summer seemed just the thing. Jiraiya then said the words that made me say yes quickly in an attempt to get out of the conversation and run to my room so I could wail about all the injustices that had occurred to both of us that could have been avoided.
"He told me he loved you, told me plain as day and out loud, and that wasn't four years ago when he moved back in with me. That night you two spent together was just a few days ago in his mind; he told me that last night when he realized who you were, the man he'd been dreaming about that I couldn't give a name to on doctor's orders. All of his feelings are as clear as day and as bright and new as a fresh penny. I just needed to make sure that yours were properly in place before I asked you to do this. It's not a little thing."
They left that evening after I agreed to write, call, email, whatever I could do to keep in touch. Anko offered to house me in the city if I ever needed a break from the kids and Jiraiya seconded the motion. I slyly slid in that I would have to return the favor if that happened and made the old man smile. He knew I'd be there before too long and that nothing would keep me from Kakashi now; there was no reason other than distance to keep us apart and that was easily solved. As soon as they were gone I told Auntie what we had planned and finally said yes to Naruto's daddy question which seemed to please both the boys. It came as a surprise to me, but somewhere in that weekend Kakashi had impressed Sasuke in some way and the quiet boy had no problem with seeing more of the man or his ability to cheat at cards. Naruto just liked him on principle due to his piratical looks.
I immediately began making plans with Anko to visit and have her conveniently need to do something that left me stranded on Jiraiya and Kakashi's doorstep for a few days. Being the devious minded female she was, Anko jumped in head first and had me packed and flying in to town without any transportation other than being driven around by somebody else within a week. Then her job, working at the city newspaper, offered her the must do task of flying out of town to back up the big reporter she'd always hoped to work for, and she just couldn't pass up a promotion tempting situation. I was duly flown in, fed dinner and dropped off at Jiraiya's within a few hours. Kakashi looked suspicious, but I unpacked my suitcase while continuously apologizing about imposing on them. After many minutes of this he finally shrugged and showed me around.
They lived in a house not far from where Jiraiya worked; a three bedroom monstrosity that I managed to get lost in twice the first day. While Jiraiya had principal duties at the school to see about, Kakashi was free the entire week I was going to be there. We started my vacation off by sightseeing in the downtown area and forcing me to walk down sixty flights of stairs on a sudden aerobic whim of Kakashi's. It was a port town near the ocean so of course we made a day trip out to the beach. Neither of us had brought swimming clothes so we wound up eating too many varieties of seafood while we walked around the tourist shops and watched historical films. Another day I was ushered by both Kakashi and Jiraiya out to the suburbs of the city to glance at a new school being built that Jiraiya was aiming to get the principal position at, and then the plot of land he wanted to build a new and even more monstrous house on.
Kakashi was a perfect gentleman the entire time I stayed. I kept smiling and talking hoping that he might relax a bit or even just lean on my shoulder as he had in Auntie's kitchen, but my last night came and went without even a lecherous look. Anko was still out of town when the time came for me to fly back home so Kakashi would up dropping me off at the airport. It near mirrored our parting just after graduation. We talked, the car pulled up to the curb, my courage hid behind the bushes waiting until the last moment to jump out and attack, but Kakashi was the one who answered my unspoken questions that time. I finally was able to see the nervousness in his eyes and then acceptance as I stared him down from the passenger seat. I parted with a kiss, just a touch of the lips and a promise to greet him at the airport come August or sooner if he wanted. He'd stayed quiet, but his smile was infectious and stayed with me until I fell asleep on the hours long flight back home.
We met again a long month later when he showed up on the farmhouse doorstep a day early. Jiraiya had called and warned us about the bee that had bit him about driving back to our small town and given us his planned itinerary which he obviously ignored completely once he was on the road. Kakashi spent the first twenty-four hours sleeping after having Auntie give him an earful on dangerous driving. He fit in perfectly.
I showed him our fields, the long rows of low growing bushes that were now speckled with bright colors. Our workers became accustomed to him grabbing a basket and picking right along beside them as I ran around with my clipboard and filled my own days with names and weights while he filled his with fresh berries eaten underneath one of our experimental lemon trees. Naruto and Sasuke would con Kakashi into helping them steal pears and plums occasionally as they were still too short to reach over and open the gate to the fenced in orchard. One day I found all four of them, Kakashi, Auntie, Sasuke and Naruto enjoying a picnic lunch underneath the bird protected trees without me and wound up stealing as much food off of Kakashi's plate as I could. They hadn't brought any for me.
The weeks passed and school season reared its ugly head as the seventh grade teacher came to speak to me over his worries regarding my sons, mostly Naruto and his class. He was supposed to be speaking to them and getting an idea of what type of students he would be teaching, but instead ignored them in favor of a fellow educator. I could only smile and wait patiently for an entry into Ebisu's constant run of sentences to shove him out the door with a promise that I would talk to Naruto, which I did. I explained to both of my kids right there at the kitchen table in front of everybody during dinner, that as long as they weren't caught I had no problems with them doing what they thought was justified retaliation. Then I pointed out some books I thought they might find interesting.
That entire year I was only called in for disciplinary action once and it was for Sasuke. To my utter and complete surprise, evidently shown by my well practiced 'shocked' face, he had been caught sharking the older students at the junior high out of their money. Gambling was officially against the rules at the school and one of the parents had complained that her responsible youngest son had been bilked out of his allowance by my wayward hoyden. I took note of the mother's name and schooled Sasuke on an acceptable apology which we gave at her door; then I treated him to a lavish dinner just the two of us and laughed at how easily and how much he'd gotten out of the kid.
Naruto turned into a devious prankster of all grades, even going so far as to set off a well known compound in the classroom I was subbing in one day. Though the culprit was never officially found he wound up being grounded for the next week and was given a thorough talking to about using my own tricks against me and for no reason whatsoever. I did manage to snap a picture of Ebisu when the school pool was cleverly dyed a light blue. Unable to tell, the entire seventh grade class had jumped in and found themselves to be a new and interesting color. Sasuke and Naruto both proudly paraded his efforts around for the two days worth of showers it took to wash out. Strangely enough the one girl I their class who might have had a reaction to the dyes used had stayed home sick that day.
Kakashi was with us that entire time, laughing and helping them plan as he whiled the days away with Auntie. It was only late in the summer that my busy mind had realized what him driving in to town instead of flying meant. He didn't have anything keeping him in the city and now had no time limit written on a plane ticket that he had to follow. I took my next step in a carefully contrived but hurried way just before the school season started. There were two days before I moved back to town followed by Auntie and the boys within a week. I brought an idea to the dinner table which brought frowns and contemplative looks from different faces. I spoke candidly to Kakashi and asked him if he'd lived alone since the accident then offered the farmhouse as a place to do so once we moved back in to town, if he wanted to stay. He would have some time to himself without annoying brats running around and dragging him off to the orchard or the lake or whatever mischief they were up to that day, and we would have time to shift the study into a makeshift bedroom for him if he wanted to stay. He seemed upset and almost ready to leave completely but relaxed when Auntie assured him he wouldn't be imposing and that we all enjoyed his company, even though she was glaring at me the entire time she was speaking. Jiraiaya had handed him into our care and Auntie was going to make sure he was well taken care of.
I was blasted with a lecture on insensitivity as soon as Kakashi went to bed in the guest bedroom as Auntie continued in her quest to make sure Kakashi was well taken care of. She threatened me the same way she did the boys as she told me exactly where the foldaway cots were stored in the attic and what type of things she was sure I needed to do to the study to make it even slightly habitable for her favored guest. I got the last laugh when she and the boys arrived at the house to see the study as messy and full of papers as it ever had been. Her mouth pursed grumpily when I explained to her that I had plenty of room in my bed for both Kakashi and myself. Then I let her in on my entire plan including the two weeks of leave I'd requested right at the start of the school year, a notorious time known for its lack of work for substitutes. I was heading back out to the farm, without them.
I'd sat and thought about it for some time while watching the boys trade off on the rope swing over the lake that day before the disastrous dinner. Kakashi had been sunning by the water's edge and laughing with Auntie over her old fashioned swimwear. He'd been polite the entire month he'd been there, but I'd seen my senior year all over again; the sly looks, the teasing words and stolen touches that were brushed off with an apology. We were both hesitant to return to our previous relationship, not that there was ever a real one and maybe that was the problem. Kakashi knew time had passed for me and was maybe giving himself his own time to get to know the new me, even if I thought of myself as the same if a few steps off of what I used to be. Possibly Kakashi wanted to make sure the new me he perceived was still attracted to the same old him; except he was the same old him now without any prospects for the future other than a large bank account due to the school's on-the-job injury insurance policy.
It was a confusing situation and my thoughts were running in circles until I paused all thought processes and took a turn on the rope swing to once more show the boys how it was done. With a louder yell than Naruto had ever given off I dropped myself right into the deepest, coldest part of the lake and stayed under until my lungs were shriveling in on themselves for lack of air. It was as I walked up the shallow bank and saw his eyes watching me that I realized what I needed to do. I think my determined expression at that time might have come off as a bit annoyed as I stared right back at him. I knew right then and there that I would have to seduce him again and had utterly no problem with doing so.
A/N: Just one more bit to go, and even if this doesn't seem to be the most popular of my stories it's one that I've finished and I'm proud of it for that! XD I hope you enjoyed it
