A/N: This is a fic based on a series of ten prompts over at the 10_what_ifs community on livejournal. The theme set I'm using is Spaceship. So, if you've figured it out, this is going to be an AU fic. The particular prompt for this chapter is 2. Space ; this chapter has been split into two because of it's length. The second half will be posted soon enough.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
Dark Side of the Moon Andromeda-7
Ino's eyes widened as she called out, "KISAME!"
Everything felt like it was suspended in syrup and time was grinding to a halt. She registered hearing two rounds of gunfire and the heavy thud as a body hit the ship's floor. She just couldn't put it into context.
"Ino! INO! For God's sake answer me! Are you alright?"
She wanted to answer, she could tell that Kisame was worried; it was obvious by the stress in his voice. There was just a serious problem with the connection from her brain to her mouth. She was able to nod though.
"Ino, come on, you need to give me the gun now. It's alright, okay?"
Gun? She dazedly was able to focus on her hands, outstretched and shaking. A gun was still cocked in them, despite her trembling. How'd that get there?
"Ino," Kisame spoke softly, "I'm going to take the gun away now, alright?"
She felt stupid that all she could do was nod. It's shock, I'm in shock. That realization made her want to laugh. She could feel her lips twitch in an almost smile, before her motor functions shut down again. She still felt Kisame carefully unwrap her fingers from the gun. It wasn't until he had safely holstered it that he swept her into bone crushing hug.
"God, don't scare me like that," he whispered into her hair. She almost felt ready to unravel, tears were threatening. This day had been such total crap.
"Did I get him?" she whispered back, not sure herself what she meant.
"Yeah, you got him. You've got the best damn reaction time I've ever seen," Kisame answered, pride evident in his tone.
Ino looked out the corner of her eye to see a human body dumped into a heap on the floor. Dark red liquid was pooling into a growing puddle.
I killed that man, she realized with a twisting in her gut like a knife. She had seen plenty of death as a medic, but never had she been responsible for killing someone.
"Oh God," she moaned.
It was coming back now in flashes. Leaning against the console, and looking up. Her eyes had found a stranger, his feet and arms stretched out, clinging to the support beams of the ceiling of the shuttle. It was a smart place to hide – the only spot really in the small craft. She could see the surprise on his face of being found, then he reached for the gun. She remembered screaming out, realizing that Kisame would never be able to reach his own weapon in time. The clinical part of her brain, the part that had been trained for medical emergencies, had clicked in, her body reacting without even thinking.
"Oh God," she whispered again.
Kisame smoothed her hair, "It was him or us. If you hadn't shot him, his shot wouldn't have gone wild."
The blonde medic nodded numbly. "Can we get back to the Courtesan now, please?"
Kisame squeezed her a little tighter. "No problem. You just sit there, in that chair, and I'll be right back okay?"
Ino nodded again. I seriously need to come up with some better response than just nodding. Maybe when the shock wears off I'll remember how.
She concentrated on the dashboard, ignoring the shuffling and the grunts. She was distantly aware that Kisame was moving the body; maybe getting rid of it? The thought made her guts twist painfully.
A flicker of motion through the windshield caught her eye. Men with guns were circling closer. Shit.
"Kisame?" Ino said, her voice cracking and weak. Had he heard?
The first officer dropped whatever he was doing; quite literally if the thud was any indication. For a man with a screwed up leg, Kisame moved pretty fast to the console. She heard him whisper an expletive before he went to action. The already idling engine hummed as Kisame pushed buttons and flicked switches. They started to steadily rise into the air.
That's when the-not-so-nice-guys-with-guns decided it was time to start shooting at them. Ringing pings were heard as the bullets ricocheted off the hull. Thankfully they didn't have heavy artillery; the hull of the shuttle was meant to take such hits like that from space debris when entering the atmosphere. It was nothing more than fleabites.
Under Kisame's careful hand, they easily rose higher than any gunfire could, and Kisame was already contacting the Courtesan.
"Courtesan, this is Shuttle One. Do you copy?"
The radio crackled with life and a familiar voice sounded off. "What the hell, Kisame! You realize you're three hours late?"
"Hi to you too, Haku," Kisame wryly replied.
"Oh don't give me that shit, old man. We've been worried sick! Zabuza had half a mind of going down there and dragging your sorry ass back up here. And I think Itachi would have let him, too."
Ino saw Kisame flinch from the corner of her eye. "I'll give Itachi a full report when I get back on the ship, 'kay? "
"Did we have trouble with the delivery?" Haku's concern was obvious despite the radio's poor audio quality.
"A little bit, just get Zabuza down here when we dock. We've got some heavy trash that needs to be tossed."
"You know how Itachi feels about bringing on trash, Kisame. We have fares to worry about."
"Yeah, well, kind of left in a hurry. I'll explain when we dock."
"You damn well better. We're locking on to your co-ordinates now. We'll pick you up in five."
"Alright, ten-four, Haku."
The signal finally went dead. Kisame sighed before standing up from his seat. "We'll be back on the ship soon. We just gotta sit tight now."
Ino tucked her legs underneath her; she felt cold inside and out. She was still wearing Kisame's long-coat, but any of his residual heat had long ago gone away. Now it was just heavy with his smell and dripping with rainwater.
How Kisame was able to still walk around on a knee with a bullet it, and after the exhausting day, she had no idea.
"You thirsty? You probably should drink something. Do you want water? You should really have some water."
Ino barely had the energy to quirk an eyebrow; she just accepted the glass of water that was thrust at her. She gulped it down, barely noticing the strange aftertaste. She just assumed it was from the being stored in the shuttle's water tank for too long.
She felt so tired. It was a tired feeling that settled in her bones and radiated to her muscles. But she could still feel the feather light touches of Kisame's fingers on her scalp; he was standing behind her, he must be aggravating his knee by doing that. She couldn't find the energy to snipe at him, she was enjoying the contact despite how she could feel how stiff her hair was from grime.
"I must look like a drowned rat, or something," she mumbled.
"No, you just look like a girl who had a bad day," was the soft response.
"I'm so tired."
"Then sleep."
"You gonna watch? Make sure it's safe?"
"Of course, sweet thing."
MWMWMWMWMW
The bed she woke up in was definitely not hers. For one, it had a bit of a view. Not much, just a tiny port hole, but it was better than anything in the passenger's dorm. She could see black dotted with little pinpricks of light. It was infinite, and she got that small feeling she always got when looking out into the black.
"Looks like your awake finally."
Ino drowsily lulled her head towards the familiar voice. "Hey, Haku." Ino couldn't help but wince at the raspiness of her voice.
"Hey," a soft maternal smile spread on Haku's face, "how you feeling?"
"Like crap." And it was the truth. There was a heavy feeling in all her limbs and there was an ache in her skull. There was also a persistent fuzziness with her thought process and a nasty, cloying taste on her tongue. She recognized the symptoms.
That bastrad drugged me.
Ino was torn between being thankful and pissed. She probably wouldn't have slept well without whatever Kisame had put into the water. But then, she hated the idea that he gave her something without her consent. The two of them were going to have words about that.
Her mood was not helped by the niggling in her stomach from guilt. All in all, she felt like total crap.
"Don't worry, it'll go away. You should get some more sleep."
Ino shook her head in small defiance. Even though her muscles were already becoming even heavier with sleep she didn't want to. There was stuff she had to do.
"I can't. Kisame has a bullet in his leg. We didn't see the guy with gun until it was too late, and we had to keep going. We should have stopped somewhere. You can't walk on a leg like that but he did and... and I need to make sure he's okay. He could get infection or... or"
The medic knew in the back of her mind that she was rambling. But she was starting to panic. How long had she been asleep? Kisame must be in so much pain. Jerk, he may be, but he didn't deserve it.
"I shouldn't be here." She tried to get up from the bed, but Haku laid a strong arm across her shoulders.
"Don't worry about that old bastard. He's already been looked after. Bullet is out, and he's all stitched up and is stuck on bed rest."
Ino hadn't expected that. "How?"
Haku wore a prideful look. "I know a little bit, you know. Before you came along I wasn't just the pilot, I was our impromptu medic, keeping our boys mostly whole. Though you have a neater hand than I do, I will admit."
"You went to medical school?" Ino asked, a little incredulous.
Haku shrugged. "Nothing fancy like your Coalition education, but I took a few years back on my home planet. Mostly because my parents wanted it for me. I hated it but it did bring me one good thing. It was how I met Zabuza."
This was something that Ino never had expected. "Really? How?"
A wistful look fell on Haku's face. It looked like it was going to be a good story. "Oh, this was years and years ago. I must have been sixteen or seventeen. I was learning at our local hospital, under the supervision of a doctor, when this hulk of a man came in all torn up into Emerg. Now see, our little hospital was real small; only a handful of doctors at any given time. It was also late, and it had been a busy night too. A few boys were being stitched up from barfights and a lady was giving birth. So everyone's hands were full."
Ino's eyes knew her eyes must have been wide. She'd always been a sucker for a good story, especially potentially romantic ones. "So what happened?"
"Well, Zabuza wasn't torn up too badly. He wasn't even bleeding that much, so I got to stitch him up. I will admit that he kind of scared me a little bit. He was one of the tallest men I've ever laid eyes on, and the scrawny boys I knew were no comparison. And he kept giving me this real intense look! I was so nervous! And he wouldn't even take any painkillers! I thought he was nuts, but thinking back, it makes complete sense."
Ino furrowed her eyebrows. "Really? Why?"
A mischievous look twinkled in Haku's eyes. "Because he knew the authorities would be coming after him and he didn't want to be slow about moving when he had to. And they did. Turned out Zabuza had come in from a badly run bank job a few towns over."
Ino had no problems imagining Zabuza robbing a bank, or coming into a hospital after being shot to pieces without any gall. That man had some ignorant pride. "So what did he do? Did they catch him?"
The pilot shook her head fervently. "Nope! I saw the local sheriff coming in and knew they were after Zabuza, so I went to warn him. He was ready to hop out the window when I came in! Stupid idiot would have broken his damn foot. It took some wrangling but I finally was able to convince him that I wasn't going to turn him over, and I was able to sneak him out the back."
"You helped him!" What if you had been caught?"
The wistful look came back on Haku's face. "I wasn't thinking about that. I guess I was kind of head over heels for him already, and I knew that I didn't want anything bad to happen to him. A little bit stupid I guess, huh?"
Ino couldn't help the smile on her face. "I think it's a little bit sweet. So what, did he whisk you away or what?"
Haku snorted. "Hardly, he left without so much as a thank you, the asshole. I thought I would never see him again. But I did, three weeks later. All torn up and bloody, again. And that's how it went for about a year. Zabuza would get himself all banged up and then he'd sneak in and see me. Though after the third or fourth time we had some kind of code so he didn't have to sneak into the hospital all the time."
Haku was practically beaming, thinking back on the memories, and Ino couldn't help be a little bit jealous. She stuffed it down though; Haku deserved her happiness even if it was with a man that Ino found terrifying. To each their own.
"During that time we got really close. He was just so different than anyone I met. He knew what he wanted and he didn't have any problems getting it whatever way he could," a wry smile quirked on Haku's lips, "myself included. Though for the longest while, I didn't know what he wanted from me. I thought I was just a medic to him. That's how I got on the ship you know. He told me that he was leaving the planet and taking a job with an old friend of his on a ship and that they needed a medic. And he knew that I could be trusted and did I want the job? Well, I was so star struck with that man I wouldn't have denied him anything. So I said of course. And that's how I got on the Courtesan."
"And here we are?" Ino provided.
"And here we are," Haku agreed with a smile.
Haku got up, her knees creaking a little. "Do you want something to drink? Or eat?"
Ino lolled her head on her pillow before she answered, "Just water. My throat is terribly parched."
Haku poured cool water from a nearby pitcher into a beat-up tumbler – industrial-made plastic that was showing it's age – and passed it to the worn out medic. Ino sipped cautiously. The water felt wonderful on her throat.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome. But sleep for a little bit longer, then we'll move you back to your room, alright?"
MWMWMWMWMWMWWMW
She spent the next three days in bed. Not because she was physically ill; the myriad of scrapes and bruises she had accumulated were already fading. Nothing would serve as a reminder of that awful day on that desert planet. Except for her memories, of course.
That was what had kept her in bed. She still felt off. It wasn't everyday someone was held hostage by a possible terrorist, had a harrowing escape and killed a bad guy. Oh yeah, the last item was definitely giving her guilt. It wasn't as bad as it was before, where she could barely function. It didn't have her to the point of endless tears. As long as she didn't think about it too much, it was a just a heavy weight on her heart.
Haku had been a great help, a wonderful shoulder to cry on, really. She listened, and Ino just needed to let it spill out of her in torrents. She felt emotionally well enough to go back to her own quarters, which Zabuza was probably glad for. It meant he could go back to his shared bunk with Haku. Ino wasn't sure where Zabuza had slept the day and night that she had been bedridden. Aside from Haku, she hadn't seen anyone. Not even a patient.
Sasuke had been moved out of the medical bay (finally) and settled into his own quarters again. Itachi was probably doing whatever Itachi did. She didn't see Zabuza normally, so his absence was to be expected. Kisame was probably still on bed rest. Or he was avoiding her.
Both of them had said some nasty things, and the job had gone so awfully wrong. Ino wasn't exactly sure where she stood with the first officer now. She was pissed at him, for a multitude of reasons, but she missed him. Even he was one of the crassest, arrogant, son of b-
"How's my medic?" a familial voice sing-songed.
"Kisame," Ino said without inflection. She kept her attention on the supply budget sheet she was working on. They were running low on gut for sutures and painkillers. Something they needed but Ino wasn't sure how well getting those supplies was going to swing when they needed to resupply. How the hell did the Courtesan manage to keep the Coalition of their trail? They must do some serious doctoring on their books to look like they kept their noses clean. Meaning she would have to. Fuck, what a pain.
"Are you listening?"
Ino looked up from her work. She had completely missed what Kisame had said. "I'm listening," she lied.
Kisame rolled his eyes before he hopped onto an examination table. "In that case you had better get hurry up and get your hands on me and do your thing. I'd like to make this fast, if you don't mind."
Ino couldn't help the blush from rising to her cheeks. The memory of being pressed hard against a wall in the rain was suddenly very present. "Uh, say what?"
Kisame raised an eyebrow at her. "Haku wanted me to have you check my knee out, seeing as you're the medical officer and all."
The blonde blinked owlishly. Totally not what her gutter-stained mind had lead her to believe. "Oh, okay. Sure, no problem. Just, uh, roll up your pant leg and lemme have a look." Ino flicked the switch to turn the glass of the medical bay opaque and to swish the door shut. Well, this wasn't going to be awkward.
Ino seemed to find every excuse to stall. She took her time getting the proper tools. Then lining them just so. Getting Haku's report so she could cross-reference. Putting on her sterilized gloves, even. Nothing seemed to take long enough though.
"Alright let's see," Ino asked as she sidled up. She could smell Kisame's cologne, warm and masculine, with the underlying scent of leather from his jacket. It wasn't a bad smell. It was very nice, actually. Maybe too nice. I'm supposed to be mad at him, remember that! Which was hard with that memory of the rain-drenched alleyway at the front her mind.
Kisame obliged, and Ino let her fingers run over the site of the injury, hiding her shyness under professionalism. The gun wound was small with close, tight, and even black stitches keeping it closed. The bullet hadn't gone into the knee joint like she had originally suspected, but several inches lower. It had been lodged into the tibia bone, however, according to the report. Her fingers felt swelling, but that was to be expected. It didn't seem to be infected, and the wound was healing well. The stitches could be removed soon.
Awkward silence stretched between them as Ino examined Kisame's leg. Ino was sure that under normal circumstances the first officer would have cracked an off-colour joke. Or bitched or something. There was nothing.
"Well," Ino said, clapping gloved hands together, "you're fine. Haku did a good job. So, yeah, I'm done. You can go. Bye." Oh this is sooooo not awkward.
Kisame sighed heavily, rolling his pantleg down. "Uh, Ino, look," Kisame nervously rubbed his hand over his face, wincing at the bruise high on cheek. As Ino had predicted, her punch had left a pretty-coloured bruise on the first officer's face.
"This is yours," Kisame held out a small disk, a mon card.
Ino folded her arms, not taking the offered item. "What is it?" she asked, suspicious.
Kisame shrugged. "Think of it like hazard pay. Or worker's comp."
Ino narrowed her eyes. "Or hush money. I already told the Captain once that I would keep my mouth shut. He doesn't have to feel that he needs to buy me off."
The first officer wasn't deterred. "You earned it, Ino, just like any one of us. It's your cut. It's what you're owed, Captain even says so."
Ino couldn't help the snort of disbelief. "Please. What money did you make off that job? Let's be honest, if I hadn't gone with you to Mephtoph what would have happened? Nothing. You wouldn't have gotten shot, and Deidara would have paid with no fuss."
I wouldn't have this heavy guilt settling on me, and I wouldn't have nightmares about the man I shot.
"You don't know that. Deidara's never been right in the head. He was bound to snap on us sooner or later, it was just bad luck that he used you for an excuse."
"That may be true but you really showed your true colours. I can't trust you," Ino spit out, refusing to meet Kisame's eyes. She missed the hurt that flickered there momentarily.
"I said I was sorry about leavin' you. And I was coming back, honest. Besides, I didn't act any different than if it had been Sasuke, or Zabuza down there."
For some reason, that explanation really burned. "Oh, that makes me feel sooo much better, really. I'm so glad at least I get the same equal disdain as everybody else. Really cheers me up. Here I thought you were treating me special, but it's just business as usual with you."
Kisame hissed in frustration. "That's not what I meant, and you know it, woman. I knew you could handle yourself, just like anyone else on this ship. And I was right." Kisame hopped off the examination table, his full height towering over her. "You proved you're more than capable. I'd trust you to watch my back anytime."
Ino shook her head. "And I don't trust you. You're too damn smooth. And a criminal."
Frustration was showing in Kisame's voice. "You trust Haku. Damn buddy-buddy with 'im."
"Haku has never yelled at me. Called me names, or disrespected me. Or mislead me about how dangerous a certain client was. Or drugged me."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Kisame yelled.
"Oh, you know exactly what I mean. You put a damn tranq in my drink on the shuttle, and don't say there wasn't because there was. I wouldn't have slept for a damn near day if I hadn't. I could also bloody well taste it."
She knew that she had him. It was the frustrated growl that he uttered. "You know what? You're half mad. I've had it with you, woman. I can't wait 'til you get off this damn ship."
"Neither can I," she hissed right back. She had filed the transfer request earlier that day. If Itachi was fast about it she could get off at the next planet, a few days away.
The door hissed open and closed when Kisame left, and after the loud argument the medical bay seemed eerily silent. Her favourite place on the whole ship seemed a whole lot colder.
MWMWMWMWW
The next few days were quiet. The only person she really saw was Haku on a regular basis. Kisame, her usual daily tormentor, hadn't shown his bruised face. Not even at the dinner table. He was very obviously avoiding her.
Haku had pleaded with her to apologize. That stung. Ino didn't think she had done anything wrong. It was all Kisame's fault, after all. Stupid idiot. Haku was under the illusion that Ino had hurt the first officer's feelings. That was a joke and a half. Kisame having feelings. Really funny joke.
Ino couldn't even find the cheer and energy to deal with her patients. She felt bad for that. They deserved better care than having her being a grump. The guilt from that didn't help her mood.
This is the last day, she reminded herself. They would be arriving shortly on a wealthy second-order planet, Andromeda-5. Really, it just was a successful terra-formed moon that circled a gas giant. But it had a Coalition base. A small one, but a station nonetheless. She could finally get off the Courtesan with her transfer papers. It was going to be a mess, trying to find another placement. She could imagine the disappointment her parents would feel to find out the news. A transfer counted as a fail in most eyes.
"Tidying up?" a soft voice asked. It was strangely familiar.
When Ino turned around she almost dropped the equipment she was cleaning. "C-captain?"
Itachi stood lazily in the door of the medical bay. He looked completely different under the bright fluorescent lights. In the dark of the navigation room, Itachi had been a series of impressions, a series of shadows. Now, those impressions were realized under the full light.
Itachi looked older than his voice belied. He had to be younger than Kisame, yet the lines under his eyes and the age in those dark eyes said otherwise. The fluorescent lights seemed to drain Itachi's skin of any colour, contrasting even more with his black hair, and the dark clothes he wore. Itachi did not look like a healthy or happy man.
"What do I owe the pleasure, sir?" Ino nearly sputtered out, nervous as a caged bird. She had only seen Itachi once, and the last meeting hadn't been exactly friendly.
Itachi tossed some papers onto a medical table. She recognized her handwriting on most of the documents. "I've come to discuss you're resignation from the Courtesan." Itachi's fingers dialled in numbers on the automatic door. It swished shut and locked at the same time the windows went opaque.
This was making her very nervous. "Did I forget to fill something out?"
A minute shake of the head. "No. Everything was filled out."
"So what's there to discuss, sir?" Ino asked, nervousness bubbling over into her voice. There was something about Itachi that disturbed her, but she knew that from the first time she had met him.
"I'm not entirely satisfied for your reasons of resignation and request for a transfer." Itachi picked up a document and Ino noted that Itachi had the small vanity of painting his nails a royal purple. It was something the upper class did on some planets.
"And I quote, 'though a professional and respectful atmosphere, there is an inability to compromise with members of the crew, and a lack of opportunity for practical application of necessary skills.' Now, it seems to be me that you're saying a lot of nothing."
"Sir, I-" the blonde medic started, but Itachi held up a hand of silence.
"You've also saved the life of my brother, and my first officer. I would like the truth, Yamanaka."
Ino sighed. She was stuck between a rock and a hard place. She was sure that Kisame's report of Calor wasn't going to line up with hers.
"Does it involve the hostage situation you were forced into on Calor?"
Ino did nothing to hide her shock. "Uh, yes."
Another minute nod from the Captain. "Don't hold Kisame responsible. He knows what he's doing, and it was best course of action, I assure you."
"He left me," she whispered.
Itachi's face was still impassive, sympathy didn't even flicker in his eyes. "And had it been me, or anyone else on the ship in your place, it wouldn't have changed Kisame's decision. In fact, it probably would have been easier for him."
Ino didn't try to hide the sarcasm in her tone. "Oh, I'm sure it would have."
Itachi's expression grew a little cold. "Yes, it would have, because we would have understood. You, on the other hand, do not."
Ino froze a little. Itachi almost sounded angry without sounding angry. It was damn scary. "I fail to see how this relates, sir."
"Because my first officer is sulking about doing his job. I also refuse to assist in his cowardice."
Ino would have gotten snippy with anybody else for the roundabout answer. She didn't dare try with Itachi. "Sir?"
"You're more beneficial on this ship. I'm denying your request for resignation and a transfer."
"Wait, you can't do that!"
Itachi raised one eyebrow, though his expression remained stoic. "I think I just di-"
A bleep, followed by Haku's voice, interrupted Itachi. -Captain?-
Itachi sighed, tapping the piece of tech installed behind his ear. "Yes, Haku, what is it?"
-We've received a distress call, from the darkside of the moon Andromeda-7.-
The dry tone in Itachi's voice indicated he was not pleased. "Ignore it. A Coalition ship will pick them up."
-But Captain, it's from Sakura.-
Ino saw Itachi's expression flicker for the very first time. "What does she want?"
-She requests assistance. Her shuttle is damaged.-
Itachi thought for a moment before he responded. "Fine, change course, Haku. We'll pick her up."
Itachi turned to leave, but Ino called out. "Wait! We need to stop at Adromeda-5! I need to get off!"
Itachi dialled the unlock code. "You're request has been denied, Yamanaka. You will remain as the medical officer on this ship. Now if you'll excuse me, we'll reach the Andromeda-7 in little less than hour and I have preparations to make."