So it's been ever so long since I last posted. To be honest, I have abandoned this story in favor of my epic Zelda story. Apologies. I will be posting the remaining chapters one for each week, and then follow with my plot notes, so you will get what would have happened, in a summary. This fic was more an exercise in writing than anything else, and I thank you all for humoring me.
I only own Reika, Michiyo, and Hiko. Naruto is not mine.
One and a half days until mission complete.
Walter stands on the front step of a neat, tidy house in Ash District.
Despite being located in the center of the village, this district is the quietest in the village, from what he's seen of it, perhaps because it contains most of the cemeteries and the massive Memorial Wall upon which the names of Konoha's martyrs are engraved. There are not many tall buildings, nor many businesses, just somber cemetery plots, wide expanses of parkland, training grounds and neat rows of houses. This house follows the architecture of most of Ash District. Konoha in general follows a trend of whitewashed walls and red tile or corrugated metal roofs, but Ash District breaks from the norm. Here houses are wooden, boarded sides painted muted colors of blue, yellow, green, rich earthy reds and even lavender. The roofs are slanted slate shingles.
Michiyo's house is grey-blue, with white trim. It sits quietly behind a sharp green square of lawn, shrubs trimmed into submission beneath wide windows that spill golden light into the night outside.
The Kagami household is small. The clan itself is large, but made mostly of women, who live in their husbands' house, leaving only the Kagami men and their families. Wisely, Walter thinks, they let the patriarch of the family tend the massive Kagami manor, whilst the sons tend to their smaller households.
Michiyo told him to dress smart, so here he is, skin and hair scrubbed raw, wearing the best clothes he owns - a mostly white button down shirt and his uniform pants, black with purple pinstripes.
He tries to pull his head together. He must be polite, and respectful, and use complete sentences as best he can. He must also observe Hiko and gather as much information as possible during dinner, whilst dealing with multiple questioners, all perfect strangers. When he is ready, he raises his hand to knock firmly on the bright green front door.
It swings inward, opened by a woman who looks a little like Michiyo. Her hair is dull brown to Michiyo's glossy black, but the eyes are the same. The smile is not. Walter does not know his teammate well at all, but she does not bare her teeth like that.
"You must be Walter," She smiles, and Walter wonders what Michiyo knows about him, and what she has told her parents. He never wanted to tell his mother much of anything when they lived together, and no love lost between them, and so does not understand the mechanics of healthy, normal family relationships.
"Yes ma'am." He murmurs in response.
"Come in. I'm Hanako Kagami, Michiyo's mother."
"Nice. To meet you." She smiles again.
"You're right on time, everyone's already in the dining room. This way." She leads him to a cheery room with mirrors hung up on the wall like one might hang paintings or photographs. The dining table is a large oval, and it and the corresponding furniture are made of a rich, dark mahogany. The walls are painted a lush navy.
Mrs. Kagami points Walter to the empty seat before sitting down herself.
Next to Walter is Michiyo, her hair slicked with some kind of vulgar product so it frames her face rather than falling into square layers around her ears. She turns her head to look at him and the movement of her head makes Walter realize she is wearing some kind of make up.
"Hey, Walter." She says, with a small, rueful smile, using her napkin to surreptitiously wipe off her lipstick. "You look… dressed up. Can't believe Mom's making me dress like this."
Walter just shrugs at her.
"Got yourself into it, things don't go as planned." He mutters, examining the people seated around the rectangular dining table.
Next to Michiyo is a tall man with the same black hair as Michiyo, and dark, almost mirror-like eyes. Then, further back, a pouting older girl similarly tarted up like Michiyo, with the same hair and eyes as Mr. Kagami, possibly a sister. Then Mrs. Kagami, who he has already met.
A scowling Hiko sits next to her, hair braided into a plait and ears free of jewelry. The woman sitting next to Hiko is obviously his mother, and obviously a Hyuuga. Both mother and son are wearing crisp white informal kimonos. Next to these finely dressed families Walter feels more than a little shabby.
"Walter, let me introduce you to everybody." Michiyo says those words like she's heard them before; obviously she has been trained to be a good host. "Everyone? This is Walter Kovacs, one of my teammates. To my right is my father, Taro Kagami - my older sister Mikoto - my mother, Hanako Kagami – I have a younger brother, Shin, but he's at a friend's house - Hiko, obviously – and his mom, Hotaru Hyuuga." A loud beep sounds from the direction of the kitchen.
"Excuse me," Mrs. Kagami says, rising, "I'll go bring out dinner."
"Where is your father, Hiko?" Walter wonders, once the woman is gone, and Hiko's scowl deepens into a full-on glare. Hotaru Hyuuga coughs a little.
"Hiko's father and I divorced, about three years ago." She says quietly. "And you? Where are your parents, Walter?"
"Live on my own."
"Hn," Hiko says, blank white eyes sharp, "I just noticed. Your accent is foreign, but still from Fire Country. Where did you pick that up?"
"Came from Capital City. I moved here when I was eight."
"I would understand that if your parents were ninja with posts in the capital, but I distinctly recall someone saying you entered the academy a civilian, not shinobi-born." Hiko says wickedly.
"Don't be a dick, Hiko." Michiyo says sharply, likely knowing what Hiko wants to hear.
"No. It's fine like this. Teammates deserve truth." Walter said, twitching a shoulder up in a half-shrug. "I'm the illegitimate child of Charles DeWitt. His teammates found me, brought me here. Apparently I look like him."
"You do. Only with sharper angles. Thank you for being truthful." Hiko says, "I take no pleasure in cruelty, but I wanted balance. In your introduction you revealed no real truths, no vulnerability, no trust."
"Trust must be earned." Walter mutters.
"So says the person who stalked me for a week."
"Yes, well. Reika-sensei kind of wrecked the normal trusting bit of teamwork right at the start." Michiyo says, her mouth quirking.
"Hn. You are correct." Hiko smirks. He scratches his neck. "…Are either of you adverse to comparing notes?"
"I don't have a problem with it." Michiyo says, grinning that closed-lip smile of hers.
"…Even if it is cheating?" The Hyuuga wonders slyly.
"Can't break a rule you don't know about." Walter grunts. Michiyo grins at the two boys.
"My words exactly. Y'know, you two ain't too bad."
"Are we supposed to know what you're talking about?" Michiyo's father wonders. She pats his shoulder playfully.
"I'll tell you later."
"Dinner's ready," Mrs. Kagami announces, carrying a heavy platter. "I hope everyone likes grilled chicken and zucchini?"
The smell is delicious, and the entire table announces their approval.
All that's left to do is dig in, and keep a sharp ear on the conversation.
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