Of Dirt cakes and Mud pies...You were wrong.
by: ScarletLettersInTheSnow
Shikamaru laid flat on his back, his hand held up to the sky as he closed his fingers, one by one. His eyes trained on the puffy white masses floating idly by. He let his hand drop back down to his stomach, wincing as his arm hit a button- a button?
Well if you must ask why he hit his arm on a button, the only answer he could give you was that he was in a tuxedo. And why was he in an tuxedo you might ask? He could not tell you.
Although this young boy, Seven years of age as of two weeks ago was intellegent, he could not answer that question.
He had simply found the thing on his bed when he came home from Ino's house, after their...'wedding'. Shikamaru shuddered involuntarily. And his mother had told him to put it on, and to keep clean, because they were supposedly going to some party that evening.
That would be easier than his mother imagined, because you see, Shikamaru had not intention of moving from the shade of his oak tree.
"Shika-kun?"
He sighed, and let his eyes close slowly. Maybe, He thought as his eyelids flickered closed, If I am still she will go away.
"Are you sleeping?" She asked him, bending down so that her hair tickled his nose.
Shikamaru sniffed and turned his head.
"I know you are faking, I saw you with your eyes open!"
"No you didn't I closed them before you got here!" He retorted, sitting up so quickly that he knocked both of them over, his hands on either side of her head as he held himself up. Ino merely grinned like a cat who caught the canary.
"I didn't know you felt that way, Shika." She purred, her tiny, pale fingers reaching up and tangling in his messy hair, peeling the dried leaves and grass out as she ran her fingers through it.
Shikamaru was frozen, his eyes stuck on her face as she cooed and clicked her tongue at him. Finally he shook his head, a blush creeping upon his cheeks.
He pushed himself off of her and scowled, his eyes immediately averting her own as she scooted towards him.
"You got some green stuff on your pants." She said, her fingernail rubbing at the giant splotch of green that stained his knees.
Shikamaru growled in frustration, as his mother walked out the door with a smile and called them both over to the house as she leaned against the back door.
Shikamaru glared at Ino and stood, walking to his mother quietly.
"Shikamaru what did I tell you!" His mother yelled as she stalked towards him. "Now you can't go!"
Stupid girls..He thought, rolling his eyes as his mother grabbed him by the elbow and rushed him to the bathroom to get the stain out...
Later that day he sat on the swing, his eyes glaring at his feet as Ino sat in front of him with her lip struck out at him.
"What?" He growled, his eyes slanting as she leaned forward, looking up at him from the veil of his wet hair.
"I've never seen you with it down.." Ino said, her eyes wide and innocent as she peeked up at him. Shikamaru snorted.
"Yeah and you'll never see it again."
Ino giggled, sitting up on her knees as she took a small strand in between her lips. Shikamaru pulled his head back, splashing her with droplets of water as his hair flung over to the back of his head. "What the heck were you doing?" He asked, his eyes wide as she sat with her elbows on his lap, he pushed them off.
"Getting the water drop." She said, her fingers reaching up and tweaking a strand so that it stood straight out from the side of his head. She giggled.
Shikamaru just sat there paralyzed as she ran her fingers through his hair. "Your hair is soft." She whispered, as she kissed his cheek, before skipping away from the rope swing and settling over his sand box.
"Wanna play house?" She asked, turning towards him with wide, cerulean ovals. Shikamaru glared daggers at her.
"No. you know I hate playing that stupid game." He said, looking away from her as she stuck her bottom lip out in a pout.
"B-but, Shika-kun." She whined, folding her chubby fingers over his his own. Shikamaru noticed how dark his skin was compared to hers. For the first time he noticed how white she was. Like she was never outside.
"Fine fine." He sighed, heaving himself off of the swing and dragging his sneakered feet to the sand box. "What now?"
"Well," She tapped her little fingernail agianst her chin thoughtfully. "You can be the tired husband who comes home from work...and I will make you feel better?"
Shikamaru merely shrugged and walked a little farther from the sandbox, waiting until Ino was settled back in the sand before he drug his feet over there, pretending to open an invisible door, and setting his 'hat' and 'briefcase' down, he meandered to the middle of the sandbox and plopped down tiredly, groaning as sand went up his nose.
"Oh Shika-kun!" She cried, hurrying over to him.
Shikamaru peered over at her through a half lidded eye. Her face striking him as odd as she looked down at him.
"Shika-kun!" Her voice really sounded truly concerned as she placed a hand on his cheek.
Her tiny hands cupped his face as she kissed his forehead, like he had seen his mother do to his father. And her mother do to her father too..
"What?" He drawled tiredly, his voice fitting his part as he blinked up at her. Where those actual tears? "What's wrong?"
"Your nose is bleeding!" She cried, blinking tears back as she grabbed the side of her dress and dabbed his nose with it. "Are you hurt?"
She looked down, noticing that it had somehow gotten all over the front of his shirt.
"I'm fine." He grumbled as he plugged up that side of his nose by pressing his finger to the nostril. "Quite being such a baby."
Ino's face twisted up with hurt. "Well excuse me for being concerned!" she yelled, causing Shikamaru to cover his ears.
Ino kicked sand at him as she climbed out of the box. "Take care of yourself, you big baby!"
Shikamaru sat up, his finger still pressed against his nose. What did he do?
Ino awoke to the sound of tapping on her window.
"What? Who is it? It is dark outside?" She mumbled as she swayed out of bed, her hands clutching her night gown as she meandered over to the window.
"Shika-kun?" She whispered harshly, her eyes slanting as she glared at him. He tapped on the window again, motioning with his finger for her to open up.
She did.
"What do you want?" She huffed, turning her head away and crossing her arms over her chest. She peeked at him from the corner of her eye.
Shikamaru smiled sheepishly, holding up a pie pan full of mud. "I made this for you, you know...because you always make me one when I feel bad."
Ino turned to him and took the pie, setting it on her window sill. "You were wrong." She said as she sat down beside him, closing the window as she watched him shiver.
"What?" He said, turning toward her with a curious expression.
"You were wrong." She said again, a smile slipping across her features.
"About what?" He asked, his eyebrows furrowing as she scooted closer to him on the window seat.
"Your hair is down again."
Ino giggled as he pulled it up into a ponytail.