Third Wish
A set of dark onyx colored orbs narrowed in vexation.
"Chouji, you can stop staring now"
Letting his eyes linger a bit longer on the blonde, a very impressed Akimichi Chouji turned to the side and eyed his friend in amusement. He silently dove his arm into the giant bag of hot chips, throwing a handful of the salty goodness in his mouth with ease. Fixing his eyes on Shikamaru he straightened from his position on the wall and threw him a look of seriousness.
"So…" The chip lover began slyly. Shikamaru pretended to ignore the slight shiver that ran up his spine and acted as if he hadn't heard the implicative tone in Chouji's voice.
"How WAS she??"
The Nara spawn chose this opportunity to choke on air.
"What?!"
Because there wasn't a simpler word in the world to sum up Shikamaru's thoughts right then.
Chouji ignored his friend's 'fake obliviousness' (as he dubbed it) and crossed his arms while leaning back against the stone wall.
"Don't give me the innocent maiden act" he spat in annoyance.
Shikamaru stuffed his hands in his pockets and glared at the weight lifter.
"I'm not! We didn't do anything!"
Chouji rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, I'm going to believe that you let a girl sleep over your house without having the intentions to bag her"
What were they, in grade school?
This was COLLEGE people!
Out of frustration Shikamaru crushed the empty can of soda in his hand. He turned slightly and easily chucked the aluminum can in the recycling bin. Crossing his arms he threw Chouji another glare.
"I'm telling you it's not like that! She's just a family friend…" he lied plainly.
Shikamaru rolled his eyes when Chouji switched glances from him to Ino five times over. The large boy seemed to observe the two persons with an intentensity meant for holding a burning rod with pliers. The shirker wanted to smack his forehead when Chouji scrunched his face at Shikamaru as if deciding whether he was telling the truth or not. Geez. He thought Chouji knew him better than that!
As he shifted his eyes on Naruto (who was picking a fight with Uchiha again...), he eyed Chouji again and the Nara sighed. Why couldn't he not see it earlier? It was totally obvious now. He took one last look at Chouji and then at Naruto (who at this point was lying on the ground with a broken jaw) and then at Kiba who had been flirting shamelessly with a bunch of girls.
Shikamaru inwardly groaned. He was surrounded by perverted IDIOTS!
After scrutinizing Shikamaru's face for what seemed like hours, Chouji finally let out a disappointed sigh while shaking his head.
"Well...I guess you're right. A cherry like you would never have the guts…"
Shikamaru took his eyes off of Naruto (who had just been carried off to the nurse's office by Lee) and glared at his friend. Like you're one to talk! he mentally scoffed.
Pushing himself away from the wall he turned to Chouji. Chouji's grin quickly faded and his eyes widened when Shikamaru's hands shot out around his neck.
"Was this the mouth that said that? Huh?" he mocked as he grabbed Chouji in a chokehold and watched in amusement as the boy struggled to break free from his grip. Shikamaru smirked.
"For a wrestler in training you have a long way to go my friend" he snorted while at the same time dodging Chouji's blows.
The sound of chanting brought a certain blonde genie out of her conversation and Ino turned her attention away from the girls. She raised a questioning brow at the amusing scene taking place by the front entrance. A small crowd had formed around the two idiots and was now cheering for one or the other. She shook her head distastefully and excused herself from the group of girls.
As she strode over to the small group, she spotted something that made her stop halfway. She blinked in surprise when she noticed the broad smile plastered on her client's face. For some odd reason she found that her thinking process had come to a full stop. The genie stood quietly and watched Shikamaru.
Damn.
For a guy who spent most of his days frowning; he sure had an attractive smile…
Shaking her head to rid her of the stupid thoughts, Ino made her way over to the cheering crowd. She gently pushed her way through the mob until she reached the front. She watched as Chouji struggled to break free from Shikamaru's grip and the latter began to yawn as if he were holding a small child. Ino smirked but decided to spare Chouji from getting his pride anymore broken.
"Excuse me boys, but can I borrow Nara-kun for a bit?" came her sweet voice.
It was then that Shikamaru had to wonder if Ino had secretly used her magic for it seemed like the whole world had come to a complete stop just then. He even supposed that this would be the time to use the 'so quiet you could even hear a pin drop' phrase. Breaking his chokehold off Chouji, he threw Ino a wondrous expression. The blonde simply smiled and extended her hand towards him. What made Shikamaru take it he didn't know but he found himself wordlessly following the genie to wherever the hell she was taking him. Hearing a few cat calls he rolled his eyes and ignored the thumbs up he was receiving from the majority of the guys. He shook his head. Idiots…
When the two were finally alone ("What are we doing in an empty classroom??") Ino turned around and placed her hands on her hips.
"So, have you thought of a wish yet oh brain-challenged one?" she questioned, sounding a bit impatient. Shikamaru found himself admiring her acting skills. She was very good at being two-faced…
He snapped out of his thoughts when Ino cleared her throat and he quirked an inquisitive brow, stuffing his hands in his pockets. He leant against one of the desks.
"You actually have the guts to ask me this? Not after the little 'incident' that happened back at the apartment" he answered truthfully. Ino frowned and crossed her arms.
"Are you positive you don't have one?" she asked and played with the hem of her skirt. Meeting his gaze once again her frown unexpectedly transformed into a devious smirk. Shikamaru felt his head pull back reflexively. He gave her a look of incredulity as a chill ran up his spine.
"What?" he asked suspiciously.
He wasn't even sure he wanted her to continue…
Ino smiled playfully and tapped her lips with her finger.
"Hmm…are you sure it's because you don't have any wishes?" she prodded lightly. She grinned cutely and hopped to sit herself on top of a desk. Shikamaru could only keep his defenses up. "You're not just…oh I dunno…saying it so you can keep an attractive girl by your side?" she finished in amusement.
She was surprised to find the boy unaffected by her taunting. Shikamaru sighed, rolling his eyes instead.
Tch…don't flatter yourself…you're not even my type…
Ino gaped at the truthfulness in his voice and a sudden desire to contradict his 'taste in women' started to burn within her.
Her eyes narrowed and she straightened her posture haughtily.
"Excuse me?! How rude! Well I'll have you know that I am very desirable and I wouldn't be caught DEAD with you in a bazillion years!" Ino countered childishly with an unpleasant huff. Shikamaru's expression remained unfaze and he silently crossed his arms. His eyes locked with hers.
"If so, then why are you wasting your time hitting on me?"
The genie mentally gaped.
Oh he did NOT just go there!
Getting a good look at her blanched expression Shikamaru couldn't help the smug look shooting its way across his features. Leaning comfortably against the desk he awaited her reaction. Ino backed away, bumping into the desk behind her. The desk made a loud scraping noise across the floor but she ignored it completely.
"WHAT?? ME?! I'm not--!! Hitting on--?!" she protested wholeheartedly despite the slight blush staining her cheeks.
Ridiculous! Abso-freaking-lutely ridiculous! So ridiculous Ino couldn't even put her words of protest into a proper sentence! Because it was just that ridiculous! Just the mere thought of having a relationship with a mortal gave her the creeps. And he's saying that she isn't his type? Well, he wasn't her type at all! He was uncool, average looking, a messy slob (A/N: that's just you Ino dear), plain, a pushover…It was obvious that his good points bowed down before his bad ones!
Ignoring her state of shock Shikamaru pushed himself off the desk and let out a small yawn.
"Anyway, my classes are about to start soon so do whatever you want for the remaining time"
Ino snapped from her train of thought and cursed him for getting her so riled up over stupid matters. She pushed their previous topic to the back of her head and tried to ignore the annoying knot still winding itself inside her.
Taking a step forward, she blinked and was surprised when her vision began to blur. The blonde faltered a bit and stopped in her tracks, resting her hand on top of the desk to support herself. Shikamaru raised a questioning brow.
"What's wrong?"
Ino winced when the room continued to spin but in an instant the mysterious sensation was gone. Removing her hand from her forehead she straightened out her posture.
"Uh…it was nothing…just felt a little dizzy…"
Shikamaru gave her a look of wonder before turning away and heading out the door. Ino watched him leave from the corner of her eye and brought her hand to rub her temples once again. What had happened just now?
Shaking her head Ino followed the lazy boy out of the classroom.
X
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Coal black eyes seemed to pierce calm blue ones intently. The owner of the dark orbs glared at the sight before him. He paused in his typing and gave Ino a once over.
"I know you don't consider me a 'man' and all but can't you at least have the decency to NOT walk around my house naked?!" he retorted bluntly with his eyes surprisingly trained on her face and only her face.
The blonde frowned and began to dry her hair with a towel.
"I'm not naked, I'm wearing a towel" she pointed out.
"Last time I checked, towels weren't admitted as an article of clothing" he countered. Ino frowned and continued to dry her hair as she walked into his kitchen.
"Oh please, you know you enjoy it…" she commented and took out a box of cookies from the pantry.
Shikamaru sighed and directed his eyes to the laptop screen to resume work on his paper.
"Again with the flirting…" he murmured quietly. Ino glared at his direction towards the dining room and slammed the fridge shut to show her displeasure. She didn't want to have another spout with him about this matter again. It'd be the thirteenth time this week.
Ino grabbed her snacks and entered the small dining room, taking a seat across from Shikamaru. Still in her towel mind you…
A comfortable silence filled the room with only the clacks of Shikamaru's laptop and munches coming from Ino. The blonde took a large gulp from her glass of milk, letting out a satisfied sigh. Shhe popped another cookie in her mouth and wiped it with the back of her hand. She noticed the look the boy was giving her and quirked a brow skywards.
"What?"
"You really enjoy running my food bill don't you?"
Ino shrugged casually. "What can I say? Food is the only thing you humans haven't done wrong"
Shaking his head Shikamaru continued to work on his paper. Ino observed him quietly as if contemplating her next action. Taking another bite from a cookie she shrugged and swallowed the bits in her mouth. She took a drink from her glass of milk and cleared her throat softly.
"Hey…" she began in the cutest voice she could muster, "...Master Shikamaru?"
There was a pause in his typing.
Sighing dejectedly, Shikamaru matched his gaze with hers. His genie calling him 'master'? This could only mean one thing…
"What do you want?"
Ino pursed her lips cutely and tapped her fingernails against the glass table. It sucked that she had to ask Deer Boy for permission about these things but she couldn't help it for it was part of the rules. She twirled a lock of her hair with her finger mindlessly.
"Can I…go to this…mall the TV speaks of?"
Eyes riveting back to the laptop screen Shikamaru took a sip from his glass of water calmly.
"That's not all of it. Just spit it out…"
Ino frowned and glared at him silently. Sometimes she wondered if he knew her too well…
She fanned her lashes at him and bit her lip.
"Well, I kind of promised Tenten and Hinata that I'd meet up with them later today…"
As if Ino could foresee his upcoming negative answer she added, "I mean, I've been good this week so I think I deserve some me time…"
Shikamaru snorted as if it was the most falsified thing she had ever said. And it probably was…
"Right. Nice try…"
She frowned again.
"Oh come on! Just this once? I want to go to Fairy Park!"
Shikamaru glanced at her for a brief second.
"Fairy Park? The one by the mall? You do know that's for kids right?"
"So! It looked fun in the commercial!"
Shikamaru shook his head. "The TV lies…plus I heard that ever since the new amusement park opened up, there haven't been any guests besides gang bangers…"
"Who cares what you hear! I want to go and you have to take me!"
Rolling his eyes at her immaturity Shikamaru continued his paper.
"No…"
Like hell was he going to let her have her way AGAIN…
X
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X
"Oh! Ino! Over here!"
Damn…I did it again!
Shikamaru watched as Ino rushed over to the tawny-haired girl and the two began to chat animatedly about heaven knows what. Strolling over to the small table he noticed that Hinata was the only one that realized his presence.
"Good afternoon Shikamaru-kun" she greeted politely.
He pulled out a chair and took a seat across from her, giving her a small smirk.
"Yo. I'm surprised your father allowed his princess to roam the city" he commented with mock surprise.
Hinata pouted and gave him a little scowl.
"Mou! Why does everyone pick on me like that? Do I have a billboard attached to my head that says 'feel free to mock me!' or something?"
Shikamaru broke out into a small chuckle and shook his head.
"Sorry Hinata but it's policy to have a go at teasing the rich princess"
The azure-haired girl stuck her lip out cutely and crossed her arms.
"If Neji-kun were here you'd be eating those words…"
Shikamaru laughed despite the fact that what she was saying was probably true.
Although none seemed to be paying close attention to the two, this little conversation did not escape the ears and eyes of a certain blonde genie. Ino didn't realize that her lack of response towards Tenten's questions was diminishing to the point where she was now silent. The blonde frowned when she felt an odd twist in the pit of her stomach. It was then that the brown-eyed girl beside her noticed that they were in the presence of a male. Tenten turned around to look at the boy behind her.
"Shikamaru? What're you doing here?" she asked with a light smile.
Taking a seat beside him (earning her a befuddled look from Ino), Tenten tapped her chin thoughtfully.
"I was only planning on having a girls day out so if you like beauty salons then you're more then welcome to join" she joked. Shikamaru scrunched his nose in disgust and offered her a frown.
"As exciting as that sounds I think I'll pass…just give me a call when you guys are finished"
The hazel-eyed girl propped her elbow on the table and cupped her cheek.
"You don't have to stay you know, I'm sure Ino can get home by herself"
I highly doubt that…
Ino threw Shikamaru a murderous glare and spoke up before he could voice his opinion.
"Uhhh…actually…Shikamaru and I have plans later…so uh, he says he'll just wait until we're done shopping…"
Hinata took a sip from her smoothie.
"Ah, I see then…"
"Do you need someone to escort you home Hinata-sama? I wouldn't want Neji to beat me up if he were to find out that something happened to you…"
Ino raised a confused brow at Shikamaru's chivalrous offer to the milky-eyed girl. Hinata laughed.
"I think he'd be madder if he saw you walking me home...and I don't want to be any trouble"
Shikamaru merely shrugged and stood up as his chair made a scraping noise against the tiled floor.
"It's alright. Your mansion is pretty close from here so I don't mind"
"But what about your plans with Ino-san?" the girl asked inquisitively.
Without even acknowledging the blonde the boy shook his head.
"Nah. It's fine…"
For some odd reason the genie scowled at his words.
Hinata gave the blonde a side glance.
"I don't know…I don't want to interrupt your plans…"
Shikamaru reached his hand out and ruffled Hinata's hair.
"Don't worry about it. It'll be fine…just give me a call alright?"
Watching the boy walk away Tenten turned to Hinata and let out an envious sigh.
"It must be nice having all the boys treat you so well Hi-sama" she smiled mischievously.
Hinata blushed crimson and shook her head in protest.
"Tenten-san, you know that's not it!"
The Chinese girl laughed and Hinata watched the blonde from the corner of her eye. Ino seemed to be scowling quietly to herself.
"I-It's not! There's nothing going on between us Ino-san so you don't have to worry…!"
Snapping out of her thoughts the blonde focused her attention on the group.
"Huh?-Oh! That's not it Hinata! I'm not accusing you of anything…"
Taking over Shikamaru's seat, Ino let out a small sigh.
"And we're not dating anyways so it's really not my business…I was just thinking about the annoying chores I had to do once I got home..." she lied easily. The other girls nodded in understanding when they remembered their unfinished essays.
Ino folded her arms across the table and leaned forward to look at Hinata.
"I'm surprised you have such a close relationship with Nara-kun"
Now, it wasn't like Ino to call Shikamaru anything but derogatory names but that was only when the two were alone. If she were to act like her real self in front of others she knew how people would react to it. So in other words she was trying to keep a good girl façade here! Call her two-faced but Ino had learned long ago that acting like a goody goody can actually benefit you and cause less problems. After all it's not like she was going to stay in this world for long anyways. She had to admit that thinking about that factor always made her cringe in her seat. It was only times like this when she actually envied these mortals…
The brunette laughed as Hinata ordered another smoothie for Ino.
"You should've seen her in high school! All the girls hated her because of her close relationships with the guys! I'm sad to say that I used to be one of them…"
Ino's brow curved with interest. "Really?"
Tenten nodded.
"Yeah. Hinata has been friends with most of the guys since childhood. You saw them when you came that one day. She was always the center of gossip because she would never talk to anyone else. People saw her as a snob. It wasn't until later when I found out that she was just too shy to speak to anyone…"
Hinata joined the conversation after setting down Ino's smoothie.
"I was always picked on in school and they seemed to get it in their heads to protect me…" she rolled her eyes. "Tenten-san was the only one who saw through all the gossip." She added and threw her friend a grateful smile.
Ino rested her elbows on the table and cupped her chin with her hands.
"Hmm….that must've been nice Hime-chi"
The cute frown on the girl's face made Ino burst into fits of giggles.
"It's not like I asked for this!"
Tenten joined in on the laughter.
"Yeah, but you really do have that high class aura going on. That's probably why we commoners feel the need to dirty our hands for you" she teased. Ino laughed as Hinata sulked.
Taking a drink of her smoothie Ino decided to let the two girls do the talking. She absentmindedly looked in the direction Shikamaru had left. She quickly averted her gaze and dispersed all thoughts of the lazy boy.
When the three girls were finished with their drinks they headed towards the many clothing stores with such glee to make a male head for the hills. Tenten and Hinata practically dragged Ino to the most expensive looking store they could find and began to pile clothes in her arms. Ino blanched at the pile of designer clothes and tried her best not to use her magic to make them float midair to spare her aching muscles.
"Are you guys seriously going to try on all these clothes??" she questioned in bewilderment. Tenten turned away from the halter top she was inspecting and blinked at Ino's question.
"Of course not! YOU'RE going to be the one trying them on!" she grinned.
Hinata pulled out a pair of studded low cut jeans and draped them over Ino's growing pile.
"You have such a nice figure Ino-san. You should wear clothes that show it off!"
Ino stared down (as best as she could) at her outfit containing of a white vested hoodie and a blue pleated skirt with fishnet stockings. Sure she liked the type of clothing that Hinata and Tenten wore but she really didn't want to wear anything guys would notice her in. Just wearing that school girl outfit to Shikamaru's school the other day made her feel a little queasy.
Believe it or not but after that train incident Ino had developed some sort of Hominophobia (Actually she had it before that incident but that's a story for another time). It wasn't really a fear for men rather it was more of a 'if you do something to me I swear I will kick your ass' kind of suspicion. The only guy (she still refuses to consider him one) she was not afraid to hang out with was Shikamaru. Mainly because in her eyes he wasn't a boy…he was just…Shikamaru…
"Ino! Are you listening?"
Ino blinked out of her stupor and nodded sheepishly. Hinata smiled.
"Come on! Let's go try these on!"
Before the spiritual being could protest, Tenten had already pushed her inside the changing cubicle. Ino sighed and dropped the pile by her feet.
Looking at the horrendous pile of clothes she reluctantly picked up a random top and began her first ever shopping experience…
X
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With the last of her strength Ino plopped down on the seat of the metro train and carelessly abandoned her shopping bags at her sides. Shikamaru rolled his eyes and from his place next to Ino, rearranged the bags in a less sloppy fashion.
"Gah! I've never been so exhausted in my life!" she whined and leant her head against the back of the seat as the train started to depart. Hinata giggled in the seat across from hers and placed her own bags in the empty seat beside her.
"You act like you've never been shopping before in your life!" she joked lightheartedly.
Shikamaru and Ino traded knowing looks.
Ino laughed nervously, "Haha…well…I don't get out much"
Glancing at the numerous bags sitting at her sides Ino frowned guiltily.
"Are you sure it's okay to buy me all these clothes Hinata? That's a lot of money to waste on just me…"
Hinata shook her head.
"No, it's alright…just...think of it as a big welcoming present from me. And anyways, I'm rich remember?" she grinned slightly. Her words didn't seem to convince Ino and Hinata tapped her chin thoughtfully.
"I'll tell you what Ino-san, If you agree to be my friend then I'll accept it as payment"
It took awhile for the girl's words to sink in and the genie could only stare at her in disbelief. She blinked at Hinata and a warm feeling began to spread inside her.
Shikamaru snorted from his seat beside Ino and he casually draped his arm across the back of the seat.
"That's just so like you to propose something like that. But people might think that you're trying to buy their friendship with money" he commented with a smirk. Hinata blinked in confusion and after reviewing his words in her head she gasped, giving Shikamaru a look of astonishment.
"No way! Does it really seem like that??" she asked in a panicky tone and nervously began to poke her two fingers together. She looked up in hopes of meeting Ino's eyes.
"I-I didn't mean it like that Ino-san! It never even crossed my mind! I--"
The Hyuuga Heiress paused when she found Ino's head bowed as well. A feeling of anxiety grew in the pit of her stomach and both she and Shikamaru eyed the girl with worry. After a long silence Shikamaru glanced at Hinata who was practically swimming in trepidation. He looked at his genie. Was Ino actually that upset about it? He had only been joking…
His eyes widened in alarm when he heard a soft sniffling sound coming from the blonde. He exchanged worried looks with Hinata.
"O-Oi…" he started cautiously and moved to place his hand on her shoulder.
What he didn't expect was for the magical being to raise her head and stare at Hinata, not with anger as the heiress had feared, but with embarrassment and sincerity.
"Suh-Sorry…" she managed to croak and brushed the tears from her eyes. Hinata's eyes widened in surprise. Ino averted her gaze in embarrassment and wanted nothing more then to be invisible right then. She played with the hem of her shirt shamefully and before she could stop herself, her mouth had started to pour out all her emotions.
"It's just…it's been so long since…" she trailed off and smiled sadly, wiping her tears away. Hinata looked at her in puzzlement while Shikamaru's face softened knowingly. He placed a comforting hand on head, ruffling her golden tresses affectionately. The warm feeling in Ino began to burn brighter and she gave in to his kind gesture, burying her head against his chest. Shikamaru froze from the unfamiliar gesture but shook off the feeling of awkwardness and stroked her hair softly.
"Are all genies this stuck up?"
"Well, let's see how you act after being imprisoned in a bottle for thousands of years and having to deal with fat old men who try to grope you every chance they get while you're granting their wishes!"
"…So that's what it's about…" he whispered and without thinking, leant down to kiss her hair.
Hinata watched the scene quietly and smiled from her seat.
Ino was going to say "It's been so long since people were so nice to me..."
And for those of you who expected more Ino and Chouji interaction fret not! It was intentional of me to leave it out…you'll find out why soon …
And yes I added a little Shika/Hina…although it's only one-sided…poor Deer Boy…
Read and Review! :D
EDIT: 6/11
By the way! I'm now taking requests for one-shots so if you have one then feel free to ask!