I Just Need a Hope [Closed Log]
Takes place a little after Asuka's "return"
Hospitals smelt so weird.
Konohako fiddled with the napkin she'd been trying to fold into a crane - it was squashed now, she was too impatient to fight with the flimsy softness of the material - and blew her bangs out of her eyes. Hospitals smelt weird because they were always cleaning them and the canteen wasn't an exception. Food and chemicals... bleh.
The girl leaned back in her seat and stared at the little speckled pattern on the ceiling. Rin-ojisan had sent her a message, so she'd come and was waiting. Maybe he'd really liked her then and this was a fun visit. Sort of. Hospitals were to be frequented if you were deathly ill and otherwise should be left mysterious and looming in the distance.
With a tight feeling in his heart, Rin walked into the hospital canteen and found it very easy to spot little Sarutobi Konohako. It wasn't just because he'd met her so recently, but also because oddly it hit him then how very much she looked and sat and sulked like Asuka. If she'd had a lighter in her possession, Rin was positive she'd be flicking it on and off just like Asuka did when she was forced to wait.
He called to her quietly once he was close, and smiled in greeting (hoping the expression wasn't as tired as he felt) as he sat down at the small plastic table opposite her. "Hey, Konohako-chan, how're you doing?"
Rin wished very much he wasn't having to do this, but at least he wasn't telling her she was dead or crippled forever... so he steeled himself to push on soon as she was settled with his presence.
Konohako immediately straightened and grinned widely as soon as she saw the man. "Hey, Oji-san!"
Dark eyes watched him slowly sit, and smile at her. The girl forced herself not to shift - he seemed tired and quiet. She didn't like it when adults got quiet around her, it seldom meant something good. So instead, Konohako folded her hands in her best grown up manner and leaned forward.
"You probably didn't call me down here for lunch." she stated, a lingering note of hope remaining that yes, this was all it was. "So is this good news or bad news?"
He couldn't help it, Rin smiled a little at her.
"In a way it's both," he said gently, making sure to meet her eyes. It was always an easy and automatic thing for him to do, but it was always a little more trying with a kid. "She's going to pull through, but your aunt Asuka is in a bed upstairs because she got hurt on a mission." He watched her face, as always unsure of how the news would be taken. Adults you could predict for this, but anyone who still was a child made it very difficult. His own hands rested on the table, empty
Konohako stared.
Then blinked a little, eyes straying to the side before fixing back on Rin. Her folded hands stayed still on the top of the table while she thought.
"But she's going to be okay." Konohako finally stated, glad that her voice was strong and steady. People always got hurt right? Well, not always but it wasn't uncommon to have to come home...
'Pull through...' That didn't sound so very promising. Had she not been going to earlier? Konohako felt a small ball of panicked fear stick in her throat and forced it down because ojisan said it was alright - besides, if it had been worse, she was sure he would have told her. Or she would have known - he didn't look like a convincing liar (adults so seldom seemed to be, except to each other).
"When is she coming home then?"
Brown eyes absorbing all the familiar details of breaking this conversation on a new face, Rin just let the news sink in unaided. He'd made things worse so many times in the past trying too soon to reassure others before they'd fully realized how bad things were.
Still, it never stopped being cruel.
"It's going to be a little while, Konohako-chan," he told her gently. "The hospital's gonna be home for her for at least three weeks, maybe longer. But all of us who're responsible for her are doing our best to make sure she gets much healthier as safely and swiftly as possible."
He gave her a moment to understand that, to let this all sink in a little more, and then gave her a small smile. "It's our business here."
Another blink. A slight gulp. Konohako's dark eyes shifted, suddenly more interested in the teeny tiny dots of teal, purple and gray that made up the pattern on the table she sat at.
Three weeks? That was a month. And maybe longer. When she'd talked to Chiriku-sama about being able to be independent, she didn't think she'd have to prove it this soon.
Her eyes flickered up. A joke? He was smiling. Had she missed it? Konohako straightened out of the slight slump she'd somehow unconsciously fallen into and attempted to clear her throat. To say something.
"Oh."
Yes, that sounded very grown up and intelligent. "When can I see her? Now?"
Well, Rin's attempted at reassuring her had gone down like a lead balloon, but as always he knew there wasn't anything to be done about the situation but to endure it. "Not just now, Konohako-chan. Nobody's allowed to see her but her medics for the next few days. It's policy for the hospital."
He looked at the girl and flexed his fingers slightly, trying not to fidget at all. He had always hated having to do this so much. It didn't matter he was good at it, it always took a lot out of him and as of right now... all he wanted was to go see Kakami and talk to her a little bit, or to just be with her for a little bit to take the edge off his thoughts and heart. But she was gone, gone on some awful mission he'd unknowingly convinced Kureno to abandon, and he had to look after Asuka and try to help Kureno and now Sachiko was in the hospital too and Konohako was all on her own and... he still wasn't well enough to be doing this.
Well what the hell else was new? Personal life shot to hell, loved ones in mortal peril across the board, everybody needing him to be doing something - in that horrible, yet useful way, it was just as well Rin was used to it. He looked Konohako in the eyes and didn't let anything in his head show. "Have you got somebody else in the village to go stay with for a little bit? Just until you can come in and see Asuka." If she didn't, Chiriku would have to be the one he called because Rin wasn't about to leave her entirely alone to wait or news about the only bit of family she had left.
She almost said no, before thinking of Moegi. Well, even if she stayed at Aunt Asuka's, he could come over lots. Konohako was sure he wouldn't mind. Besides, if she went to stay with him, she might not be able to bring Mister and then he'd need a babysitter. Or would that be a catsitter? She'd have to pay for that and how much would it cost-
Konohako gave a slight shake, stopping the sudden flood of thoughts. "Yes." she said firmly. "Yes...I have a place to stay."
Her eyes fixed on him again, slightly wider than she'd intended, but it helped keep the tears from welling up too quickly and she really did want to cry but that was childish and useless and embarrassing.
"You promise she's going to be okay." Dammit, she hadn't meant to sound so low or let that shaky note into her voice. Her gaze didn't waver. "You're not just being nice 'cause I'm a kid, are you? Cause I'd have to kick you for that. And I kick hard."
Rin shook his head. "Of course not, it's the truth. She will be okay, Konohako. We got her home." Then he rubbed his temple gently and just looked at her, realizing she was trying not to let how upset she was show. "I wouldn't treat you like a kid, Konohako. You're younger but you're still a kunoichi of Konoha and you're owed respect equal to what you've got to deal with, ne?"
He didn't tell her what he'd been through by her age... that nobody had treated him like a kid in a hospital ever since he was seven years old. It only mattered that she was allowed something better. Instead he sighed a little and gave her a small smile as he wrote something down on a piece of paper from his pocket. "Hey, this is the number for Asuka's ward. You can't tell it to anybody else, but being family you're entitled to call it any time day or night to ask how she is, okay?"
She took the paper and folded it before placing it in her pocket before she nodded. "Okay."
Ojisan's words helped keep the tears at bay. He wasn't going to treat her like a kid and somehow that helped make it easier not to act like one. Her shoulders squared a bit, encouraged that someone at least saw her as a little more important than she'd been feeling lately. Well...someone who sorta mattered. (Moegi sort of, technically didn't count. Even though he mattered to Konohako, he was just her age).
"Thanks." she said quietly, swinging her legs a little mostly because she didn't know what else to say.
"You're welcome, Konohako. I'm sorry I had to call you here for this news," he said, watching her straighten up a bit and feeling relieved. There was nothing weak about this girl, but grief and worry over what Asuka had stupidly gotten herself into was perfectly acceptable to him. It was natural, it was even healthy. It was what had to be, especially for her only living family.
He sighed slightly and pushed up to his feet. "I've got to go see Asuka now," he told her gently. "Is there anything you want me to tell her? She's asleep just now... but sometimes you never know."
She shot him a smile - dimmer than her usual ones but a smile nonetheless. Konohako thought for a moment, fingers of her left hand idly playing with the hem of her shirt. Something to say?
Konohako looked back at Rin and shrugged. "Just...tell her that I came." She hesitated. "And that I'm glad she's gonna be okay."
There wasn't much else to say. Maybe she'd think of more later. But now, she needed to go home and find Moegi. Especially find Moegi; Moe-hugs sounded very good right now. Konohako slid out of the booth and stood as well.
"Thanks again ojisan." She leaned her head to the side. "Take care, okay? You look kinda like you should be in bed too."
For that, Konohako earned another smile. "Excellent diagnosis," he murmured. "You take care too, Konohako-chan. Remember there's a lot of us who're here for you if you need us, okay?" Like him, like Chiriku, like Suzumo and Iruka and Aki even. Friends of her family, her teachers, the temple... it was Konoha's strength. "Don't hesitate asking. Even the strongest need somebody around sometimes." He gestured to the door. "S'why I'm gonna go check-up with Asuka just now. I'll tell her what you said."
And he'd tell her how lucky she was to have Konohako. That too.
Hospitals smelt so weird.
Konohako fiddled with the napkin she'd been trying to fold into a crane - it was squashed now, she was too impatient to fight with the flimsy softness of the material - and blew her bangs out of her eyes. Hospitals smelt weird because they were always cleaning them and the canteen wasn't an exception. Food and chemicals... bleh.
The girl leaned back in her seat and stared at the little speckled pattern on the ceiling. Rin-ojisan had sent her a message, so she'd come and was waiting. Maybe he'd really liked her then and this was a fun visit. Sort of. Hospitals were to be frequented if you were deathly ill and otherwise should be left mysterious and looming in the distance.
With a tight feeling in his heart, Rin walked into the hospital canteen and found it very easy to spot little Sarutobi Konohako. It wasn't just because he'd met her so recently, but also because oddly it hit him then how very much she looked and sat and sulked like Asuka. If she'd had a lighter in her possession, Rin was positive she'd be flicking it on and off just like Asuka did when she was forced to wait.
He called to her quietly once he was close, and smiled in greeting (hoping the expression wasn't as tired as he felt) as he sat down at the small plastic table opposite her. "Hey, Konohako-chan, how're you doing?"
Rin wished very much he wasn't having to do this, but at least he wasn't telling her she was dead or crippled forever... so he steeled himself to push on soon as she was settled with his presence.
Konohako immediately straightened and grinned widely as soon as she saw the man. "Hey, Oji-san!"
Dark eyes watched him slowly sit, and smile at her. The girl forced herself not to shift - he seemed tired and quiet. She didn't like it when adults got quiet around her, it seldom meant something good. So instead, Konohako folded her hands in her best grown up manner and leaned forward.
"You probably didn't call me down here for lunch." she stated, a lingering note of hope remaining that yes, this was all it was. "So is this good news or bad news?"
He couldn't help it, Rin smiled a little at her.
"In a way it's both," he said gently, making sure to meet her eyes. It was always an easy and automatic thing for him to do, but it was always a little more trying with a kid. "She's going to pull through, but your aunt Asuka is in a bed upstairs because she got hurt on a mission." He watched her face, as always unsure of how the news would be taken. Adults you could predict for this, but anyone who still was a child made it very difficult. His own hands rested on the table, empty
Konohako stared.
Then blinked a little, eyes straying to the side before fixing back on Rin. Her folded hands stayed still on the top of the table while she thought.
"But she's going to be okay." Konohako finally stated, glad that her voice was strong and steady. People always got hurt right? Well, not always but it wasn't uncommon to have to come home...
'Pull through...' That didn't sound so very promising. Had she not been going to earlier? Konohako felt a small ball of panicked fear stick in her throat and forced it down because ojisan said it was alright - besides, if it had been worse, she was sure he would have told her. Or she would have known - he didn't look like a convincing liar (adults so seldom seemed to be, except to each other).
"When is she coming home then?"
Brown eyes absorbing all the familiar details of breaking this conversation on a new face, Rin just let the news sink in unaided. He'd made things worse so many times in the past trying too soon to reassure others before they'd fully realized how bad things were.
Still, it never stopped being cruel.
"It's going to be a little while, Konohako-chan," he told her gently. "The hospital's gonna be home for her for at least three weeks, maybe longer. But all of us who're responsible for her are doing our best to make sure she gets much healthier as safely and swiftly as possible."
He gave her a moment to understand that, to let this all sink in a little more, and then gave her a small smile. "It's our business here."
Another blink. A slight gulp. Konohako's dark eyes shifted, suddenly more interested in the teeny tiny dots of teal, purple and gray that made up the pattern on the table she sat at.
Three weeks? That was a month. And maybe longer. When she'd talked to Chiriku-sama about being able to be independent, she didn't think she'd have to prove it this soon.
Her eyes flickered up. A joke? He was smiling. Had she missed it? Konohako straightened out of the slight slump she'd somehow unconsciously fallen into and attempted to clear her throat. To say something.
"Oh."
Yes, that sounded very grown up and intelligent. "When can I see her? Now?"
Well, Rin's attempted at reassuring her had gone down like a lead balloon, but as always he knew there wasn't anything to be done about the situation but to endure it. "Not just now, Konohako-chan. Nobody's allowed to see her but her medics for the next few days. It's policy for the hospital."
He looked at the girl and flexed his fingers slightly, trying not to fidget at all. He had always hated having to do this so much. It didn't matter he was good at it, it always took a lot out of him and as of right now... all he wanted was to go see Kakami and talk to her a little bit, or to just be with her for a little bit to take the edge off his thoughts and heart. But she was gone, gone on some awful mission he'd unknowingly convinced Kureno to abandon, and he had to look after Asuka and try to help Kureno and now Sachiko was in the hospital too and Konohako was all on her own and... he still wasn't well enough to be doing this.
Well what the hell else was new? Personal life shot to hell, loved ones in mortal peril across the board, everybody needing him to be doing something - in that horrible, yet useful way, it was just as well Rin was used to it. He looked Konohako in the eyes and didn't let anything in his head show. "Have you got somebody else in the village to go stay with for a little bit? Just until you can come in and see Asuka." If she didn't, Chiriku would have to be the one he called because Rin wasn't about to leave her entirely alone to wait or news about the only bit of family she had left.
She almost said no, before thinking of Moegi. Well, even if she stayed at Aunt Asuka's, he could come over lots. Konohako was sure he wouldn't mind. Besides, if she went to stay with him, she might not be able to bring Mister and then he'd need a babysitter. Or would that be a catsitter? She'd have to pay for that and how much would it cost-
Konohako gave a slight shake, stopping the sudden flood of thoughts. "Yes." she said firmly. "Yes...I have a place to stay."
Her eyes fixed on him again, slightly wider than she'd intended, but it helped keep the tears from welling up too quickly and she really did want to cry but that was childish and useless and embarrassing.
"You promise she's going to be okay." Dammit, she hadn't meant to sound so low or let that shaky note into her voice. Her gaze didn't waver. "You're not just being nice 'cause I'm a kid, are you? Cause I'd have to kick you for that. And I kick hard."
Rin shook his head. "Of course not, it's the truth. She will be okay, Konohako. We got her home." Then he rubbed his temple gently and just looked at her, realizing she was trying not to let how upset she was show. "I wouldn't treat you like a kid, Konohako. You're younger but you're still a kunoichi of Konoha and you're owed respect equal to what you've got to deal with, ne?"
He didn't tell her what he'd been through by her age... that nobody had treated him like a kid in a hospital ever since he was seven years old. It only mattered that she was allowed something better. Instead he sighed a little and gave her a small smile as he wrote something down on a piece of paper from his pocket. "Hey, this is the number for Asuka's ward. You can't tell it to anybody else, but being family you're entitled to call it any time day or night to ask how she is, okay?"
She took the paper and folded it before placing it in her pocket before she nodded. "Okay."
Ojisan's words helped keep the tears at bay. He wasn't going to treat her like a kid and somehow that helped make it easier not to act like one. Her shoulders squared a bit, encouraged that someone at least saw her as a little more important than she'd been feeling lately. Well...someone who sorta mattered. (Moegi sort of, technically didn't count. Even though he mattered to Konohako, he was just her age).
"Thanks." she said quietly, swinging her legs a little mostly because she didn't know what else to say.
"You're welcome, Konohako. I'm sorry I had to call you here for this news," he said, watching her straighten up a bit and feeling relieved. There was nothing weak about this girl, but grief and worry over what Asuka had stupidly gotten herself into was perfectly acceptable to him. It was natural, it was even healthy. It was what had to be, especially for her only living family.
He sighed slightly and pushed up to his feet. "I've got to go see Asuka now," he told her gently. "Is there anything you want me to tell her? She's asleep just now... but sometimes you never know."
She shot him a smile - dimmer than her usual ones but a smile nonetheless. Konohako thought for a moment, fingers of her left hand idly playing with the hem of her shirt. Something to say?
Konohako looked back at Rin and shrugged. "Just...tell her that I came." She hesitated. "And that I'm glad she's gonna be okay."
There wasn't much else to say. Maybe she'd think of more later. But now, she needed to go home and find Moegi. Especially find Moegi; Moe-hugs sounded very good right now. Konohako slid out of the booth and stood as well.
"Thanks again ojisan." She leaned her head to the side. "Take care, okay? You look kinda like you should be in bed too."
For that, Konohako earned another smile. "Excellent diagnosis," he murmured. "You take care too, Konohako-chan. Remember there's a lot of us who're here for you if you need us, okay?" Like him, like Chiriku, like Suzumo and Iruka and Aki even. Friends of her family, her teachers, the temple... it was Konoha's strength. "Don't hesitate asking. Even the strongest need somebody around sometimes." He gestured to the door. "S'why I'm gonna go check-up with Asuka just now. I'll tell her what you said."
And he'd tell her how lucky she was to have Konohako. That too.