3: My Name is Niiro
The dog backed up a little, ears pricked, still damp from the rain. Now that she was closer Tatsuki could see the dog's white fur, marked by blue-grey and ringed by dark red-brown by its paws, mouth, tail, and chest. Nothing but a street cur, the dog carried itself – herself, apparently – proudly, head held high, the picture of arrogance. Crouching lower, Tatsuki offered her hand. The dog pointedly ignored it.
Trying again, she tapped her hand once on the concrete, lightly, not sure what she meant by it. This time her quarry turned and stared at her. Clear, bright eyes flashed and caught Tatsuki's. It was a challenge. Grey and blue clashed over a few feet of distance. The human said nothing. The dog did not move. In the back of her mind, Tatsuki wondered how far she'd fallen to be arguing with a dog, but the thought lost out to the staring contest. Finally, with a tiny, human snort, the dog broke the gaze, moving her eyes to the still street instead.
Pride swelled in Tatsuki's chest. She didn't move her hand, just watched the dog again, forgetting for a while her life and its problems.
Although they didn't seem to want to leave her alone.
Suddenly the dog's ears pricked, and her tail wagged slightly. The cool blue gaze was fixed on something just over Tatsuki's right shoulder, and as she turned to look, Mizuiro cocked his head a little.
"Tatsuki-chan? What're you doing?"
Hastily, she stood up and stretched, trying not to think about what she'd been doing. After all, it wasn't exactly normal.
"I was talking – no, just watching this dog."
Mizuiro shot her a sideways look. She met it levelly, and he looked away, saying nothing. Out of the corner of her eye, Tatsuki thought she'd seen him blush. (A/N LOLFLUFF.)
"That's Niiro, there."
He pointed at the dog, who had been still. Now her tail wagged on the ground and her manner softened. She'd recognized a master in Mizuiro.
Tatsuki glanced at the still-dark sky nervously, wondering if she should say something.
"I'm gonna go. It's gonna rain again."
She decided to speak, earning a smile and a nod from the boy. From the distance a whimpering yell rang out. Tatsuki grinned a little and jerked her thumb over her shoulder.
"'Asano-san' needs you."
Mizuiro grinned back and started to walk away, whistling to Niiro. The dog didn't move. Sitting adamant beside Tatsuki, she was deaf to his call, proudly proving where she'd chosen to be. He turned and came back, beckoning instead. Still he was haughtily dismissed. In a low voice, Tatsuki urged the mutt along. No luck. Niiro wasn't going anywhere.
Reality came smashing back into her head, making it throb with the thought of facing it again. Tatsuki wondered idly if the dog had to deal with this kind of thing. Probably not. On account of dogs had four legs and no opposable thumbs. The words she wanted to say stuck in her throat, and the only thing that could pass through the block was the only thing she said.
"Do you miss him too?"
A shadow of confusion slipped over Mizuiro's face. It left as quickly as it had come. Crestfallen, he nodded, eyes unfocused. Tatsuki did not press him. Niiro growled under her breath and stood, glaring at the girl who'd caused the tension with inhuman eyes full of human understanding. Tatsuki shot back a look, but faltered, and dipped her head. Watching Mizuiro, she noticed his shoulders tense. Did he want to say something, or what?
"Come back here tomorrow, okay?"
It sounded innocent as he said it. Tatsuki looked back at him, startled, but he'd already relaxed. Casually, he closed his eyes and laughed as another whine became the words "Help me."
"I have to go pick Asano-san off the street. 'Bye, Tatsuki-chan."
He strode off, this time without calling Niiro, who picked up her feet and willingly trotted after him. Tatsuki, still thinking hard, went in the opposite direction, considering what had happened and what she'd learn about dogs. It was only after she was far out of Mizuiro's earshot that she realized what he'd probably been thinking.
Tomorrow/alone/?
"Aw, shit."
((A/N: Hey guys. xD Sorry I'm so slow to update. School wants my soul, and so I might take a while to get things up here. Lucky for you I have the next three chapters or so outlined, which translates into new chapters fast. And then I get to go sit down and plan more. With a pen and paper. What a novel idea. I outline stories with pens. xDDD
Anyway, I get sidetracked so fast that what should have taken me an hour, give or take thirty minutes, to do takes me a total of three and a half. I can't go read Kingdom Hearts comics in the middle of writing Bleach fanfictions. Bad idea.
Also, expect something GinKira shortly. It's my friend's birthday (zabuzakakashi. and I'm feeding her fic goodies. Not to mention it is also Ichimaru's birthday around this time, soyeahjointpresentswhoohoo.
REVIEW. REVIEW AND REVIEW AND THEN GRAB A JUICEBOX. AND THEN REVIEW MORE. You know I'd love you and I'd go faster if I had motivation, yeah? Tell me anything you wanna see, or stuff you liked, or where I used a cliché, or the fact that you noticed that I didn't actually edit much. You guys are awesome like that. –Phriight
P.S. Long note, huh? xDDD))