Fanfiction - Christmas fic - Changes ch3
Continuing Reggie's songfic challenge. Chapter three - fourth and final *should* go up tomorrow (I'm posting this at like 2AM, so really I mean today) In any case, I hope people like this, I think it's nice. And I forgot to mention last time, but I'm trying to make reference to all the 25 days challenges that I didn't write about, and also reference to another of the songs that I realy like! Yeah, anyway ^_^
Author: Lily Kalanoa
Story: Changes
Rating: PG-13 at the most
Pairings: Kakashi/Iruka, but struggling
Disclaimer: I'm creative, but I borrow characters, don't we all?
Spoilers: Um, a few for my 12 day fic, but nothing else I think
Theme: Faith Hill's "Where Are You Christmas" song will appear in later chapters
Chapter 1 - Iruka's Christmas
Chapter 2 - Kakashi's Christmas
**
-o-o-o-o-o-
Changes
Chapter 3 - Christmas Eve
-o-o-o-o-o-
Kakashi was careful not to be seen. He let Iruka leave the bar first before dashing out himself, carefully slipping into the man’s apartment well before the teacher arrived. He even had time to get in touch with Gai. When Iruka stumbled up to his doorstep a few minutes later, Kakashi waited in silence for the slightly drunken man to negotiate his own lock. The door swung open silently, but Iruka paused in the doorway. Drunk or not, he sensed something wrong and Kakashi could see a glint of silver in his hand. “It’s me, ‘Ruka.”
The teacher paused, blinking into the darkness. “Kakashi?” he finally asked, stepping inside as his eyes slowly adjusted. “What are you doing here?”
“Caroling.”
The other man kept blinking for a moment before he put one hand to his head. “Kakashi, I’m a little tipsy, you’re going to have to make more sense than that.”
“We should go caroling. It’s just the sort of thing you’d like and it’s something I can’t screw up, right?”
Iruka moved further into his home, setting his kunai aside. “You sing?” he asked hesitantly, glancing at Kakashi again.
The masked man smiled a little and nodded. “I can sing.”
“And you know Christmas carols?” The teacher sounded more than a little skeptical.
Kakashi let out a little giggle, as much to put Iruka’s fears aside as it was to hide his own nervousness. “I may not be Mr. Holiday Spirit, but I know some holiday songs. Gai and Lee have put together a caroling group and they should be by soon. This is early on their route, if you want to join them.”
For a long moment, Iruka didn’t react, turning over the invitation in his mind. But he looked up with a smile finally. “I’d love to go caroling with you, Kakashi. It’s starting to get late, though, lemme get a heavier coat.”
Kakashi’s smile grew and he moved to help the man as he stumbled a little. He really had done something right. And he could hear Gai’s loud voice coming down the street. He abandoned Iruka as the man pulled on a scarf to open the door, letting the songs drift in more easily.
As the group moved, they were singing out ‘Here We Come A-Caroling’ with a particular emphasis on the second line: ‘among the leaves so green’. It was a fairly small group, with only Gai and Lee to represent the men of Konoha. Tenten and Sakura had joined them, however, providing some lovely melodies. Tsunade was also there, singing slightly off key, but straight-laced Shizune made up for it with a ringing soprano. Catching sight of Kakashi’s face, Gai gave a beaming smile and a thumbs up.
As the song came to an end, Kakashi turned back to Iruka, grinning widely. “Hey, I actually know this one,” he chirped as they started singing again.
Iruka’s smiled became suddenly fixed as the first few lyrics of ‘Frosty the Snowman’ reached his ears. Kakashi sang along, not noticing the sudden change past his own smile. He darted forward, grabbing the teacher’s arm and the reaction was immediate. Iruka’s free hand darted out, jabbing Kakashi in the diaphram and bringing a quick end to his singing.
The masked man curled around the punch slightly, coughing and trying to regain his stolen breath. “What- Iruka?”
Iruka was holding his head again. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. It’s just- ugh, I can’t stand this song!”
All this drama was going on out of sight of the caroling shinobi, who continued to sing, completely unawares. Kakashi glanced out the door at them as he straightened. “Okay, no Frosty. I can do that.”
“It’s about a magical creature who runs off because he’s dying! If you’ve ever seen the cartoons, the villains go around trying to melt him and steal that stupid hat! It’s depressing! It’s horrible!”
Kakashi popped over to the door, sticking his head out. When Gai stepped closer to see what was wrong, Kakashi grabbed the man’s book of songs. “Is something the matter, my honorable rival? Is Iruka-sensei all right?”
Kakashi was flipping through the book quickly. “This one,” he said, pointing. “Sing this one.” Gai took the book back with a shrug, eyeing the song Kakashi had picked. The masked man himself ducked back into the apartment and back to Iruka’s side. “Deck the halls with boughs of holly. It’s the season to be jolly; and be thankful for all that we have.”
Iruka blinked rapidly, looking up at the white haired man. After a moment his smile twitched back, real this time. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”
Kakashi abandoned the carol, one arm around Iruka’s shoulders as he led him out into the cold. “I don’t mean to offend, but it’ll take more than a sucker punch from you to bring me down.”
Iruka laughed a little, joining the group as they started down the street. “Wishing it could last forever, not just twelve days in December. Through the year it’s time to remember . . .”
Hours later, Iruka found himself curled around a cup of hot cider with his fellow carolers at the central building. They’d been through most of the village now and were taking a break before caroling everyone back to their homes. The alcohol was wearing off and Iruka was slowly becoming more sober, but he found it didn’t decrease his joy any. He really was having a good time, he thought with a smile as he looked at Kakashi. If there were more times like this . . .
“You’re good for him.” Iruka looked up sharply at the soft voice as Gai took a seat beside him. After a pause, the green-clad ninja smiled gently, noticing the rather confused look he was getting. “I’ve been trying for more than ten years to get Kakashi to join me on wonderful excursions such as this one.” Another smile. “You’ve done it in two weeks.”
Iruka could feel himself blushing at the thought. “I’m not doing anything special.”
“But that’s not true!” Gai said loudly with an offended air. “You’re doing something only a few ninja have ever even attempted; you’re giving him a chance.”
Iruka blushed more, but he couldn’t deny it. He remembered clearly what his friends had told him earlier that evening. In fact the only reason he had given the masked ninja a chance was because that very thought had occurred to him and Iruka didn’t want to be so narrow minded.
“He doesn’t really know how to fit in, how to get along with people. Now that his age-mates have finally caught up to him in terms of power, it’s far too late. Even if he or others made the effort . . . you’re good for him, even if only for a little while.”
Iruka nodded slowly, smile warm and delightful. “I like it when it’s like this. If he can try, so can I, right?”
“Whatever he’s telling you, don’t listen!” Kakashi appeared behind the pair without warning, leaning over Iruka’s shoulders. “This guy’s a dirty liar.”
Gai pushed back from the little table, glaring offended at the white haired man. “You dare besmirch my honor thus? I am a noble man, a trustworthy and chivalrous person! And I havn’t even mentioned the time your uniforms were stolen.”
“Lies! All lies!”
Gai leaned towards Iruka conspiritorialy. “You see, as a welcome from some jounin, when Kakashi left ANBU to come back to us, his uniforms were stolen. A welcome back joke, as it were.”
“It was cruel and unusual punishment, I should have stayed with the ANBU!”
Iruka chuckled as Gai continued. “I loaned him a spare jumpsuit-“
“Cruel and unusual!”
“He’s just bitter because it tore at the seat and he had to-“
“Lies!”
“-tie his vest around his waist-“
“Don’t listen!”
“-for three hours until he could slip away from training without anyone following him. He had to train the rest of the day in his pajamas!”
Kakashi settled on one hip, mock glaring at Gai. “This coming from the man who, when his jumpsuit was stolen at the bath house, chose to simply walk nude down the street to buy a new one.”
Gai just shrugged. “I had my towel! Besides, it was seven in the morning, the streets were barren!”
Author: Lily Kalanoa
Story: Changes
Rating: PG-13 at the most
Pairings: Kakashi/Iruka, but struggling
Disclaimer: I'm creative, but I borrow characters, don't we all?
Spoilers: Um, a few for my 12 day fic, but nothing else I think
Theme: Faith Hill's "Where Are You Christmas" song will appear in later chapters
Chapter 1 - Iruka's Christmas
Chapter 2 - Kakashi's Christmas
**
-o-o-o-o-o-
Changes
Chapter 3 - Christmas Eve
-o-o-o-o-o-
Kakashi was careful not to be seen. He let Iruka leave the bar first before dashing out himself, carefully slipping into the man’s apartment well before the teacher arrived. He even had time to get in touch with Gai. When Iruka stumbled up to his doorstep a few minutes later, Kakashi waited in silence for the slightly drunken man to negotiate his own lock. The door swung open silently, but Iruka paused in the doorway. Drunk or not, he sensed something wrong and Kakashi could see a glint of silver in his hand. “It’s me, ‘Ruka.”
The teacher paused, blinking into the darkness. “Kakashi?” he finally asked, stepping inside as his eyes slowly adjusted. “What are you doing here?”
“Caroling.”
The other man kept blinking for a moment before he put one hand to his head. “Kakashi, I’m a little tipsy, you’re going to have to make more sense than that.”
“We should go caroling. It’s just the sort of thing you’d like and it’s something I can’t screw up, right?”
Iruka moved further into his home, setting his kunai aside. “You sing?” he asked hesitantly, glancing at Kakashi again.
The masked man smiled a little and nodded. “I can sing.”
“And you know Christmas carols?” The teacher sounded more than a little skeptical.
Kakashi let out a little giggle, as much to put Iruka’s fears aside as it was to hide his own nervousness. “I may not be Mr. Holiday Spirit, but I know some holiday songs. Gai and Lee have put together a caroling group and they should be by soon. This is early on their route, if you want to join them.”
For a long moment, Iruka didn’t react, turning over the invitation in his mind. But he looked up with a smile finally. “I’d love to go caroling with you, Kakashi. It’s starting to get late, though, lemme get a heavier coat.”
Kakashi’s smile grew and he moved to help the man as he stumbled a little. He really had done something right. And he could hear Gai’s loud voice coming down the street. He abandoned Iruka as the man pulled on a scarf to open the door, letting the songs drift in more easily.
As the group moved, they were singing out ‘Here We Come A-Caroling’ with a particular emphasis on the second line: ‘among the leaves so green’. It was a fairly small group, with only Gai and Lee to represent the men of Konoha. Tenten and Sakura had joined them, however, providing some lovely melodies. Tsunade was also there, singing slightly off key, but straight-laced Shizune made up for it with a ringing soprano. Catching sight of Kakashi’s face, Gai gave a beaming smile and a thumbs up.
As the song came to an end, Kakashi turned back to Iruka, grinning widely. “Hey, I actually know this one,” he chirped as they started singing again.
Iruka’s smiled became suddenly fixed as the first few lyrics of ‘Frosty the Snowman’ reached his ears. Kakashi sang along, not noticing the sudden change past his own smile. He darted forward, grabbing the teacher’s arm and the reaction was immediate. Iruka’s free hand darted out, jabbing Kakashi in the diaphram and bringing a quick end to his singing.
The masked man curled around the punch slightly, coughing and trying to regain his stolen breath. “What- Iruka?”
Iruka was holding his head again. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. It’s just- ugh, I can’t stand this song!”
All this drama was going on out of sight of the caroling shinobi, who continued to sing, completely unawares. Kakashi glanced out the door at them as he straightened. “Okay, no Frosty. I can do that.”
“It’s about a magical creature who runs off because he’s dying! If you’ve ever seen the cartoons, the villains go around trying to melt him and steal that stupid hat! It’s depressing! It’s horrible!”
Kakashi popped over to the door, sticking his head out. When Gai stepped closer to see what was wrong, Kakashi grabbed the man’s book of songs. “Is something the matter, my honorable rival? Is Iruka-sensei all right?”
Kakashi was flipping through the book quickly. “This one,” he said, pointing. “Sing this one.” Gai took the book back with a shrug, eyeing the song Kakashi had picked. The masked man himself ducked back into the apartment and back to Iruka’s side. “Deck the halls with boughs of holly. It’s the season to be jolly; and be thankful for all that we have.”
Iruka blinked rapidly, looking up at the white haired man. After a moment his smile twitched back, real this time. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”
Kakashi abandoned the carol, one arm around Iruka’s shoulders as he led him out into the cold. “I don’t mean to offend, but it’ll take more than a sucker punch from you to bring me down.”
Iruka laughed a little, joining the group as they started down the street. “Wishing it could last forever, not just twelve days in December. Through the year it’s time to remember . . .”
Hours later, Iruka found himself curled around a cup of hot cider with his fellow carolers at the central building. They’d been through most of the village now and were taking a break before caroling everyone back to their homes. The alcohol was wearing off and Iruka was slowly becoming more sober, but he found it didn’t decrease his joy any. He really was having a good time, he thought with a smile as he looked at Kakashi. If there were more times like this . . .
“You’re good for him.” Iruka looked up sharply at the soft voice as Gai took a seat beside him. After a pause, the green-clad ninja smiled gently, noticing the rather confused look he was getting. “I’ve been trying for more than ten years to get Kakashi to join me on wonderful excursions such as this one.” Another smile. “You’ve done it in two weeks.”
Iruka could feel himself blushing at the thought. “I’m not doing anything special.”
“But that’s not true!” Gai said loudly with an offended air. “You’re doing something only a few ninja have ever even attempted; you’re giving him a chance.”
Iruka blushed more, but he couldn’t deny it. He remembered clearly what his friends had told him earlier that evening. In fact the only reason he had given the masked ninja a chance was because that very thought had occurred to him and Iruka didn’t want to be so narrow minded.
“He doesn’t really know how to fit in, how to get along with people. Now that his age-mates have finally caught up to him in terms of power, it’s far too late. Even if he or others made the effort . . . you’re good for him, even if only for a little while.”
Iruka nodded slowly, smile warm and delightful. “I like it when it’s like this. If he can try, so can I, right?”
“Whatever he’s telling you, don’t listen!” Kakashi appeared behind the pair without warning, leaning over Iruka’s shoulders. “This guy’s a dirty liar.”
Gai pushed back from the little table, glaring offended at the white haired man. “You dare besmirch my honor thus? I am a noble man, a trustworthy and chivalrous person! And I havn’t even mentioned the time your uniforms were stolen.”
“Lies! All lies!”
Gai leaned towards Iruka conspiritorialy. “You see, as a welcome from some jounin, when Kakashi left ANBU to come back to us, his uniforms were stolen. A welcome back joke, as it were.”
“It was cruel and unusual punishment, I should have stayed with the ANBU!”
Iruka chuckled as Gai continued. “I loaned him a spare jumpsuit-“
“Cruel and unusual!”
“He’s just bitter because it tore at the seat and he had to-“
“Lies!”
“-tie his vest around his waist-“
“Don’t listen!”
“-for three hours until he could slip away from training without anyone following him. He had to train the rest of the day in his pajamas!”
Kakashi settled on one hip, mock glaring at Gai. “This coming from the man who, when his jumpsuit was stolen at the bath house, chose to simply walk nude down the street to buy a new one.”
Gai just shrugged. “I had my towel! Besides, it was seven in the morning, the streets were barren!”