Cameo by Resha Valentine, a character of the series Rave Master. For Ino's top, think what Keira Knightley was wearing in Bend It Like Beckham when she was in Germany. And yes, Ino is going to sing a song by Jade from Sweetbox.
Disclaimer: I do not claim to own this! This is by Masashi Kishimoto, genius that he is.
The sales clerk and various assistants eyed him as he stood outside Ino's dressing cubicle. He avoided their curious gazes and looked about the store instead, feeling decidedly awkward.
"So how did you become a bodyguard? Last time I heard, you wanted to raise deer." Ino giggled, her voice slightly muffled.
"I was in the secret service before I became a bodyguard. When I left I thought becoming a bodyguard would be easy money." He replied, the comfortable weight of his gun at his side. And easy money it was, four thousand a week.
"You must be pretty deadly then, for four grand a week." She echoed his thoughts. He sighed. "Yes."
"You'll have to show me your mad skills later." He could hear the grin in her voice. "Alright." He mumbled.
"You were recruited in the service for your brains right? Probably some sort of strategist." Shikamaru blinked at her accurate deduction. "Yes, actually." Ino snorted inelegantly. "Hand me that will you?" Came her voice. It was hard to imagine that her voice, as snappish as it sounds now, was often used to charm and bewitch thousands of people on stage. Shikamaru shook his head.
"I'm here to save your life, Miss Yamanaka, not help you shop." Shikamaru said levelly, and wondered where Sakura was. Ino shoved the curtain aside to glare at him. Her pale arm reached around him to pluck a shimmering silver top besieged with sparkling sequins from a hanger. Her blue eyes were as ablaze as the fabric; she yanked the curtain back. Shikamaru sat down in the chair and let his head loll back, wishing he could doze off.
A shriek from inside the cubicle startled him to his feet; within a split second he had torn aside the curtain and had his gun drawn out and cocked. Ino stared down the barrel coolly, unblinking and smiling triumphantly. He is good, she thought.
"So how do I look?" She asked, coy and flippant, giving him an impressive twirl on her black stilettos. She wore extremely tight fitting hip-hugging black pants that looked like it was poured on her. Her silver top – well, he wouldn't really call it a top, more like a waylaid shawl. It stretched over her like a large U, the opposite ends coming up behind her neck to form a halter that revealed a scandalous amount of chest. Her entire back was exposed, as the top was only kept in place by very thin black strings that she had tied off. She was absolutely gorgeous of course, but that didn't mean he wasn't furious at her.
He narrowed his eyes into slits. "You'll be the death of me." He growled, and jerked the curtain back. He crossed his arms and brooded, meditating on slowly bringing his blood pressure (and heart rate) down. Ino grinned smugly, and inspected herself in the mirror again. She'd gotten the reaction she'd wanted, verbally or not, because that absolutely toe-curling, smouldering look he'd given her was enough. She looked at herself, flushed and excited again. She suddenly sobered.
Laying a hand on the mirror, she gazed more critically at her face. Pale and flawless, a very light scattering of angel's kisses on her nose, large royal indigo eyes framed with long lashes; she'd been hailed as one of the most beautiful women of all time, a goddess from the heavens that the media and the critics - hell, everybody worshipped. Ino frowned, so why did he keep turning you down? Why weren't you good enough for him? Her gaze turned furious as she glared at herself, and ripped off the frugal top with a vengeance. She stuffed it into her 'Yes' box and shoved her original light blue baby doll shirt on. She blinked away the moisture from her eyes. What a joke, she thought sarcastically, you can cry and stop at the drop of a hat when you're acting, but now you can't stop.
Ino stormed out of the cubicle, her blue eyes finally dry; she shoved the 'No' box full of clothes and discarded shoes into Shikamaru's arms and avoided looking at him. He followed her to the reception, where she slammed her box down on the counter with more force than necessary. Shikamaru handed his box to the assistant for sorting. The cashier saw Ino's slightly red eyes and tear-stained cheeks, but wisely said nothing.
The superstar finally found a reason to wear her Dolce and Gabbana sunglasses when thy got outside. Successfully hiding her puffy eyes, she spun imperiously on one heel and slid into the limo after refusing Shikamaru's arm. He got in after her and sat opposite the sullen blonde, keeping silent too. Don't even think about it, Nara he berated himself, she's too good for you.
XxX
Ino was in one of her moods again, Sakura noted with exasperation. The blonde diva had awoken that morning with a rebellious look on her face. Breakfast was a hurried, furious affair as Ino stabbed her eggs and toast with a butterknife. She refused to tell anybody what her problem was, and snapped at anybody trying to be civilised. And when she discovered there wasn't much to do because of her prescribed 'rest', Ino had thrown a fit. And now…
"Ino! Please Ino, be reasonable!" A brown haired man with a scar across his nose and a very harrowed expression was pleading with the mulish celebrity. Sakura tried to persuade Ino too, but the blonde wouldn't budge an inch. Iruka was sure he was going to go bald soon; he'd worked for Naruto a while back, but Naruto was on vacation and he had suggested to Iruka to work for Ino instead. But even as demanding as Ino was, Iruka supposed that Naruto's hyperactiveness was still a lot more stressful.
"I want to do it!" She said, "I'm sick and tired of this ridiculous rest! What am I resting from anyway?" Her caustic tone whipped the others with razor sharp efficiency. She still didn't know about the threats. Shikamaru hurried up.
"What is it?" He asked, and Iruka's shoulders slumped in defeat. Shikamaru didn't blame him; what Yamanaka Ino wanted, Yamanaka Ino got.
"She wants to go to R.A.V.E. for an impromptu gig." Iruka moaned, but his hands were already dialling several numbers on his phone. "What?" Shikamaru demanded; she folded her arms and stared back at him, her lower lip jutted out in defiance. Her eyes couldn't meet his steadily however.
"Miss Yamanaka -" He began, but her temper flared again. "Shut up Shikamaru! I'm sick of needing approval for everything I do! You work for me! When I say jump you say 'how high?'" She hissed, then gasped and clapped a hand over her mouth. His eyes narrowed and his lips pressed into a thin line. "I see." He said, his voice low. He turned around and walked away.
Ino stared after him, her hand reaching out as if to call him back. She clenched her fist however, turned stiffly and ran up the stairs to her room. Iruka and Sakura didn't miss the tears that fell from the blonde's eyes.
Sakura found Ino face down on her massive bed, the cerulean blue silk sheets rumpled as the blonde bawled into her matching pillow. Sakura sighed sympathetically, and sat beside her best friend, and rubbed comforting circles on her back.
"I don't know why I keep being such a bitch!" Ino cried, and sniffled.
"I'm sure he knows you didn't mean it, Ino." Sakura said, her voice soothing.
"It doesn't matter! I still said those awful words! Argh!" Ino threw her hands up and curled into a ball, howling, "I'm such an awful person!"
"No you're not Ino!" Sakura protested, and handed Ino some tissues. The blonde blew her nose while Sakura chided her, "You were cranky, and that's all. Everybody's entitled to a few outbursts every now and then, but that doesn't make you an evil person."
Ino's erratic breathing finally calmed down, and she dragged herself upright. "Do you think he'll forgive me?" She asked mournfully. Sakura smiled. "Of course!" Ino spread her arms out and gave Sakura a tight hug; the rosette squeezed back. "Thanks." Ino whispered into her pink hair, and Sakura smiled again. "No probs."
XxX
Resha Valentine, owner of the R.A.V.E club was more than happy to have Ino perform on the stage, last minute or not. They were close friends, and because this was Ino's first gig in quite a while, the club will be given oodles of publicity. Her club, named after the first and last letters of her two names, was a celebrity hotspot, but open to the public as well. That night, the flashing neon lights and fireworks were on full display, drawing in huge crowds.
Ino was robed in black, the hood obscuring her loose hair. She hadn't said a word to Shikamaru, and him, likewise, didn't say a thing either. Too troublesome, and he knew she was sorry. They rolled up near the back of the club, packed with people too. He opened the door first, and nodded at the other men holding the crowd back. He leant a warm hand down, and her cool, soft hand slipped into his. He escorted her out of the limo, and was almost tipped forward with the sheer amount of noise the people were making.
"This is why I hate show business." He grumbled, and she could only smile at him weakly. Ino glanced up when she felt him squeeze her hand slightly, and saw him smile slowly at her, lazy and crooked. Her heart felt like it had exploded and liquefied into her stomach at the same time. He still made her insides react violently, she found, especially with that particular smile of his. It was why she fell in love with him in the first place, after all. She squeezed back and smiled genuinely.
The crowd were all clamouring for her signature, and she signed everything with simply 'Y Ino." Her last name would be a nightmare to keep repeating, and when she felt the tell tale signs of cramping, she stopped and apologised. The crowd groaned, but returned to its surging adoration of her when she pouted. She smiled beatifically, and they all sighed collectively, melting into goo. She's manipulating and playing them like yoyos, Shikamaru realised, and he almost laughed out loud; she had the world in the palm of her hand.
They finally got through the masses and into her dressing room, which was decked with every kind of gift basket you could possibly imagine. At the centre of the room was Resha Valentine, her dark blonde hair in loose ringlets, her hands on her tanned hips and a smirk on her pink lips. "You have some gall, Yamanaka Ino, to call such an impromptu gig." Ino tossed her head, "Well, who else was going to bring this dead-beat club back to life?" She said nonchalantly, then grinned and drew her friend into a hug.
"Whoa, who's this?" Resha asked as she eyed Shikamaru up and down. Ino slapped her arm. "He's my bodyguard." She said smugly, and Resha dropped her jaw in mock outrage.
Ino snickered. "Green doesn't suit you my dear." She said snobbishly. Resha laughed, "I think he's going to be the one who needs a bodyguard. There's a lot of young eager girls in the crowd today, just looking for a fine piece of meat to sink their claws and teeth into." Shikamaru did not appreciate being compared to meat. Ino snorted in a very un-ladylike manner. "Who, him? He's the laziest bum this side of the universe!" Resha didn't buy it; she winked at Shikamaru over Ino's shoulder and nodded. "Sure, sure, Ino, whatever you say."
"Hey!" Ino said hotly, and Resha laughed again. "Alright Ino, I've got to make sure those incompetent fools don't mess up the stage. What're you singing today?"
"Real Emotion. I've got my dancers here already." Ino said, and Resha nodded her approval. "You mind if I join in? I created the dance after all." Resha said archly, and Ino enthusiastically agreed. "Except", said the platinum blonde, "You better not out dress me." The tanned woman laughed and waved a flirty goodbye and left the room. Iruka jumped when a sweating assistant rushed to him for help. The two men sprinted out of the room. Ino looked at Shikamaru meaningfully. "Alright, you. Out, out! I have to put my costume on!" Shikamaru put his hands in his pockets, and turned around.
"Ahem." She coughed. He sighed and rolled his eyes, then trooped to stand beside the door and behind the screen. Never had a client as demanding as her. Then again, this is Ino.
Ino sat down at one of the seats and hummed to warm up, brushing some of her hair in front of the brightly lit vanity. She went to the clothes rack and pulled out her costume for the night, and got dressed, slipping the robe back on when she finished. She sat at the table again to reapply some makeup. Something caught her attention. It was a letter, in a plain, off-white envelope that sat innocently among the perfume bottles, addressed to her. Curious, she plucked it out, and opened it.
"YaMNakA iNo
YOU HavE EvERyThing yOU TooK fRom ME.
tHere shAll CoMe The TIMe whEN YoU Will LoSE it ALL
PrePaRE to DIE."
Heh, that whole changing room scene was pictured perfectly in my head. Don't you just love the whole 'they keep missing each other!' thing? Like they never seem to be able to meet each other halfway. That's how I always imagine Shika x Ino to be. He wanted normalcy and she was anything but, and she did everything to get his attention but that just drove him away. :Sob:
Eh, sorta unhappy with this right now, might edit in the future. Was the hate mail scary enough? O.O The last sentence reminds me of Inigo.
But for now, review please!