Cocoon

Chapter 6

~o~

When the team finally felt that they had reached a safe distance, they made camp near a small stone cliff with enough indentation to guard them from the winds, but not so much that it actually formed a legitimate cavern. It did provide shelter and was a lot less moist than other locations, but the team was to fearful to light a fire. Kiba placed a camouflage ward around the area, but they couldn't be too careful.

As they were setting up their sleeping bags, Kiba was the first to address the elephant in the camp.

"So...what the hell was that all about?"

"What do you mean, Kiba-kun?" Hinata replied, her voice laden with exhaust.

"You know exactly what I mean, Hinata. We basically just walked into a death trap specifically designed for us. It's a miracle Shino can still see."

Hinata bit her lip and concentrated on setting up her little corner. Her sleeping bag was still damp and reeked of mildew, but at least it took her mind off the impending guilt bomb waiting to drop on her.

"A mission is a mission. We delivered the message, and escaped alive, that's all that matters." Shino stated calmly, while removing his boots and setting them neatly by his bag.

"A mission my ass. Our mission was to be disposed of...maybe we aren't supposed to be here right now..."

"What are you saying? You're scaring me, Kiba..." Hinata's attention was now undivided.

"I'm betting that lunatic Uchiha is behind this...I bet he's still pissed about everything...he wants to kill us all off, one mission at a time..."

"The only lunatic here is you, Kiba. Give it a rest. We've had a long day and we'll have a longer one tomorrow. Get some sleep."

With that, Shino crawled into his bag and rolled over without another word.

"Hmph...well, keep those eyes open, Hinata. I have a feeling we're not out of the woods yet."

"But we aren't out of the woods...we're still in them."

"You know what I mean! Sheesh! I'm going to bed. C'mon, Aka."

As Kiba and Akamaru wandered off to their side of the camp, Hinata looked down at her soggy sleeping bag. It really didn't look all that appealing, and she really didn't want to sleep by herself after the whole fiasco. But what choice did she have? What she really wanted was Naruto, but he was miles and miles away, in some foreign land in some foreign meeting with some grumpy bearded weirdos who probably bored him out of his mind. She chuckled at the thought for a moment, then remembered how lonely she was being so far away.

Defeated, she lifted up the edge of her sleeping bag, and began to slip her foot in, then something hideous skittered out from it. She gasped sharply and fell back, landing in the wet leaves behind her. Her eyes began to well up once again, and she kicked her sleeping back with utter frustration before huddling in a ball in the moist earth.

"Hinata...?" That all too-familiar voice softly called out from the darkness.

"Leave me alone, Shino..." She whimpered, her face buried in her knees.

"Did something scare you?"

"No..."

"Come here."

She turned to him, reluctantly, and saw exactly what she hoped she wouldn't see...Shino's inviting sleeping bag lifted up for her to slip into.

"I won't do anything you don't want to do. I just want to make sure you're rested."

She sighed, and caved in...like she knew she would. She didn't regret it, either. His sleeping bag was perfectly dry and cozy. As she wormed in next to him, she looked up at his goggle-less face.

"I was really scared today, you know...I don't know how you can be so cool about it."

"I was only so because I didn't want you to be scared."

She looked into his eye. It glistened in the dim light.

"If you want to know the truth Hinata, I have never been more terrified in my life. I was truly expecting to go blind, and for a moment I almost wished it, believing it would save me from seeing you...get k-"

He swallowed hard on the last word. Hinata wasn't sure how to react to this...she had ever seen this level of emotion in him.

"When you caught him, I was so proud of you. I thought of how much you've grown with us, and how much stronger you've become. I'm glad that you are just as capable of protecting us as we are of you, if not more."

She felt her cheeks grow hot. "Th-th-thank you...Sh-shino-kun, that really means a lot to me..."

The back of his fingers gingerly stroked her cheek. "You're so warm."

His words made her pull back a bit...they were words that didn't come from Shino Aburame. What was with him?

"I'm...sorry," he pulled his hand away. "I said I wouldn't do anything if you didn't want to."

"It's...okay..." she muttered. She really should have just left, maybe go see if Kiba had room in his bag...ugh, but that dog smell...

"You should go to sleep. I won't touch you anymore, I promise." He began to roll away from her, but Hinata, suddenly hesitant, grabbed his shoulder.

"Wait, I don't want to be alone..."

"You're not alone, I'm right next to you."

"No, it doesn't count, you have to face me, or else I'll be by myself."

"Hinata..."

His expression was dimly lit, but it truly looked troubled.

"Please?" she asked softly.

"I can't, Hinata..."

"Why?"

"I just can't..."

She stared at his back, and felt how tense his body had become. His behavior was truly troubling her, so she couldn't help but press him further.

"Shino...why are you acting like this?"

He faced her abruptly then, gripping her cheeks in his palms.

"Because I can't control it anymore!"

His voice was a whisper, but a sharp and intense one. His remaining eye stared with such fret, it made Hinata go stiff.

"Wha..." was all she could manage.

"Don't you understand? For years, I've slept beside you, holding you, keeping you warm. I've watched over you, watched you grow up from an innocent little girl to a such a strong and respectable kuonichi. I...savored being so close to you, Hinata, but no matter how much I desired something more, I had to keep myself in order... because for some bizarre reason I still have yet to fully comprehend, you wanted to be with that imbecile you call your boyfriend. But I respected that, because it was your heart, and your choice. I stood aside, and was simply happy that you were happy. But now...it's been harder. It's been so much more aggravating because I know how he treats you...he barely has any time for you at all, now that he is the Hokage...isn't that so?"

Hinata couldn't bring herself to respond. All she could do was stare doe-eyed, feeling the hot, salty wells of tears beginning to spill forth for the thirty-seventh time this evening.

"You know, I wanted him to treat you better. I wanted him to love you as much as you love him, because you deserve that, you deserve it so much. I lost half my vision and all I could think was 'thank goodness Hinata wasn't here, or this would have been her eye, not mine.' Not five hours ago I almost lost my vision, I almost saw you lose your life, and I was so terrified...So I can't do it anymore, Hinata...I can't let you lie here next to me and not kiss you, and not hold you in my arms and know you're safe in them. I can't stop myself from making love to you and giving you every ounce of affection that you worked so hard for and waited so long for...so I have to turn away, because I know I'm not the one you want to be with."

Oh, Shino...she thought to herself. My poor, beloved Shino. If only he knew how important he was to her...how her relationship to him couldn't be put into words. He was more important to her than Naruto, she knew then. She didn't want to taint this special bond they had with something as vile and utterly temporary as a romantic relationship. She would trade the world for Shino, and she would rather die than live in a world without him.

But how could she say something like that out-loud and have it make any sense at all? Her heart and mind was entirely topsy-turvy, but she had to give him something. She had to show it, somehow. Without another word, she reached up an cupped his face in her delicate hands.

She stared longingly into his eye, her own glistening and pink from her tears. Without another word, she placed her lips firmly on his. She decided that she would give herself to him completely, if just for a night. She was still the significant other of the Hokage, and that couldn't change, but she felt like this was something that should have happened long ago and never did.

Like the Ichihokage had once unlocked the prison of the great Kuruma, Hinata's kiss unleashed an ancient and growing passion that had been clawing at the walls for decades. His arms wove themselves around her and squeeze her to him so desperately, as if her body would save his life. He dove into her kiss just before pulling away, just enough to see her face. Another one of their silent conversations passed. The words were clear to each other just in their expression.

May I have you? All of you?

Yes, I'm all yours...

And he did have her. His lips and fingers traveled across her body like a spiritual walk-about. His kisses along her neck were so perfectly smooth and moist, it was if he had been crafting them for years just to fit along the indentations in her skin. She could feel her clothing being unzipped and unbuttoned and tugged away. It wasn't long before she could feel her bare flesh pressed against that of Shino's, secured by a thin layer of hot moisture. They were completely naked faster than she had expected, and the excitement of it was new and exillerating. She entwined a leg around his, and felt that all-too-familiar pressure against her petals. She was slick now, and swollen. It seemed bigger than before, and she breathed in, realizing that not only were the rumors true, they were underexaggerating.

"Are you ready?" he murmured into her ear, preparing himself before her loins.

"I've done this before you know..."

"Not with me."

As he began to enter her, she realized what he meant. No, she wasn't ready, not at all...but she didn't want it to stop. He filled her so thoroughly, she felt as if she had never once been truly whole until this moment. Her gasp was deep, and a bit too loud.

"I'm not hurting you, am I?"

"Go slow..."

So he did. Oh, it was like chaos and order all rolled into some new reality. The sweat was thick, made so by the insulated walls of their cocoon. Her legs pretzeled around him, pulling him in deeper, and preventing him from leaving too much.

"Ah...Hinata...don't...I'll...oh..."

Suddenly, and all too quickly, she felt him spasm. After a moment of seizing up, he sighed, then gave her a look of utter shame.

"I'm...sorry...I've just...been waiting a long time, so..."

She smiled and ran her fingers through his sleek strands of hair.

"It's okay. I'm happy I could make you happy."

He slipped himself from her, then lay on his back, panting softly. After a few seconds of catching his breath, he turned to her.

"Do you...want it to be your turn now?"

Hinata blinked in surprise. Now that...was something she hadn't heard in a very long time.

~o~