"Hey~! Hinata!" Pale eyes moved from a book to a young blond man. "N... Naruto..." He was one of the village hunters, but he was somewhat dissed by the folk as all he got until now were rabbits and birds, caught by traps. "I'll take part of the next hunt, maybe I'll get a bear! Then Sakura will see how I'm great!" These words made the woman get disappointed. She closed her book and got up. "Good to know, stay safe." But before she could get away, another man blocked her path. "Hyuuga, I will bring ten deers for your hand." She pursed her lips, smiling falsely. Sasuke Uchiha, the local playboy that tried to get to her every time. 'I'm just one more mark on his bedpost.' "Excuse me sir, but my family does not have need for so much game." He flashed her an infuriating smirk. "What would you say if you and I took a walk over to the tavern and took a look at my trophies?" Exasperated by the acts of the two men that she had to endure every day, she went straight for her house.
"Welcome back sis." Hinata's sister had been rummaging through the kitchen, trying to prepare a meal for their father. "Hello, do you need help?" The younger one hesitated a little before lowering her head. "Yes." The eldest sighed, reaching for an apron. "Go get some eggs, I'll prepare something for us."
"Father?" Hinata had knocked on the door, waiting a reply. "Enter." The hinges creaked loudly, revealing a man prone over several papers. "I'll leave the food here." She just received a 'hn' back. Her father had been burying himself in his study, serving as a manager of sorts for the chief of the village. Her mother had died a few years prior due to an unknown illness, in her opinion it had been the trigger for his reclusion. "Hinata?" She left the room after hearing her cousin. "When did you come back, Neji?" He was handling the horse, taking off the dead animals to skin them. "Just now. Are you going to the library?" She nodded. "Figures, that place is your second home. Stay well." She nodded again. "You too, in the hunt."
"Hello, which books do you want now?" Shiho peered at her regular visitor from under thick glasses. "I'll try to find the ones I haven't read yet." "Okay, take your time." While she browsed through the shelves, she felt a presence behind her that was very familiar. "What did Sakura tell you?" Naruto probably had a runny nose and came to get comfort from her. It had been nice at first, but now he was over reliant on her. "She said that I can't compare to Sasuke in hunting." She sighed, putting the book back on its place. "I'm busy now." He grabbed a random book and flipped it. "But how can you read these? They have no pictures!" She took the item from his hands. "I'm sorry, but I have several errands." She went out, leaving him alone.
She had put the borrowed books in a basket and went to her favorite reading spot, but one more man had blocked her path. "Kiba..." The youth was the local dog breeder, and like most, had his sights on her. "Hinata, if you marry me, I'll give you a good life. Here, picture this: a rustic hunting lodge, my latest kill roasting on the fire, and my little wife massaging my feet, while the little ones play on the floor with the dogs. We'll have six or seven." She knew what he meant, but humored him instead. "Dogs?" "No, dear! Handsome boys like me! And do you know who is the wife?" She felt a chill going up her spine. "Let me think..." He grabbed her shoulders. "It can be you! Think about this." Now she was honestly getting ticked off, her reading time was being shortened by those suitors. "I... I don't deserve you." She had gently pried his hands off and fled swiftly.
"Haa..." Hinata was walking through a narrow path in the woods, having taken the precaution to ask for permission like her mother taught her. 'Every tradition has a reason for existing.' Such was her reasoning. She reached a clearing, made by a tree that had been struck by lightning. She sat down on the grass, taking a book from her basket. She heard twigs being crushed, but figured that it was just some deers or boars. The sounds repeated a few moments later, seemingly closer. She stood still, sudden movements could spell trouble. *Thump... thump...* Something was getting closer, it sounded like a big animal. 'Maybe it's an adult deer?' She tried to reassure herself. Then it stopped right behind her, she could hear a deep breathing. 'Don't let it be a wolf, please!' She saw a large paw right on the corner of her sight, reaching for the basket that held more books. 'Eh?' She turned around slowly, facing the origin of many legends she had heard as a child.
Kurama had been watching this curious human female that came daily, bringing books and leaving after a time. He had gotten curious, she didn't seem to be as afraid ad most villagers. 'I never saw those books before.' This had been the first time in decades that he didn't feel rage at the sight of a human. Today, he couldn't hold himself, he went and grabbed a book, starting to read it, ignoring the confused woman in front of him. 'Hmm? What does this word mean? ... it looks like gibberish.'
Hinata was deeply confused, she was facing the monster of the forest, yet she couldn't feel ill intent, it merely flipped the pages of the book. 'It knows how to read?' She gulped dryly, staring at the claws and tails. "Err..." It snapped its head towards her. "Eep! Ah... I mean... who are you?" She hoped that it wasn't angry at her. Its ears and whiskers trembled somewhat as it approached her. 'Help!' She had closed her eyes in fear, but she was just poked on the head, seeing the being pointing at certain letters in succession. 'K-u-r-a-m-a?' "Is your name Kurama?" It nodded. "I am Hinata. So you just want to read books..." It nodded again, showing a fanged grin. "Fine then. Wait, if you're the one of the legends, you must have gotten many books, right?"
Weird, this woman wasn't afraid of him. Not much at least. She had even questioned him. 'Can I trust her?' He didn't care anymore. "Ye..." His throat was a bit rusty, all he ever did was to roar or growl, never talk. "Gurrr... heck!" He coughed a little, but she had understood him anyway. "Can you take me there?" The request surprised him. 'Is she blinded by the books?' Whatever, she was powerless compared to him after all. He lowered his body after handing her books back, gesturing to his back. "Me? Ride you?" He got impatient with her fidgeting and simply threw her over his shoulder, holding the basket with one of his tails.
The surprise was too great, Hinata had to clamp her hands over her mouth to stifle a scream that could have attracted a hunter. 'Calm down! If he wanted to kill you, he'd already have done it!' She couldn't trust her body yet. To distract herself, she focused on her breathing, trying to speed it down. There were so many turns in his path, no wonder that the hunters through time had all failed to catch him. He had taken her to the castle. It had partially collapsed a long time ago, but through trial and error Kurama had made a safe room for his loot amassed until now. It was located where the great hall used to be.
'So this is the castle...' She watched as he moved the large doors. "C... gome hin..." As she had expected, there were several books, and tossed to a corner was a dusty pile of jewelry and some crates. Many books were unreadable for her, as they were more archaic, but many others were closer to the actual language. "Can we make a deal?" These words caught his attention. "You teach me how to read these older books and I'll help you to speak again. Do you accept?" An ear lifted up in interest.
Heh, I used some lines from the original Gaston in some male characters, trying to fit in the ones closer to canon personalities, I hope you liked it. Read and leave your opinion.