[open to whomever]

[ise_nanao_chan]

It had been a pleasant day. The weather in the evening had been nice enough to make Nanao decide to walk home from her class, which she did with a light step. The cool air grew cooler as she walked, but she didn't mind at all. She loved the winter when it was like it had been, clear skies during the day and hazy clouds right at sunset. The fresh

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[shy_bird]

Hinata headed down the stairs towards the mail, looking down at the ground and not paying much attention. She hadn't even thought to grab their mail when she'd gotten home, and it had only just now occurred to her.

She stopped suddenly when she glanced up and saw someone else there. She hadn't expected to run into anyone.

"Ah, I'm sorry."

[ise_nanao_chan]

Nanao almost didn't look up from the letter still clenched in her hands, but when she realized that she didn't recognize the voice she slowly pulled her attention away.

"Sorry.. for what? Here. I'm in the way," she mumbled, sliding sideways down the wall, dragging her bag along with her foot. Her hands were still clenched on the papers, but she tried to smile at the newcomer.

"I'm sorry... I don't think we've met... Ise Nanao, apartment 4." With an almost visable effort, she let go of the paper and offered her hand to the other woman.

[shy_bird]

Hinata watched the woman closely before stepping forward and taking her hand, shaking it quickly before pulling away. "Hyuuga Hinata, Apartment 7." She was sure Nanao was right in that they hadn't met, but she did seem familiar somehow. They must have passed by each other a few times.

She tried not to look at how the other girl clenched the papers in her hands and focused instead on getting her mail. Not much--some bills, spam mail, useless credit card offers. Shutting the small door, Hinata paused and then glanced over at Nanao. And couldn't keep herself from worrying.

"...Are you alright?"

[ise_nanao_chan]

Nanao had already looked back down at the letter while Hinata got her mail. She blinked, clearly not expecting the question. "I... just got a letter from my father... I thought I'd never hear from him again..."

She carefully folded the letter back up and made sure she put it back in the envelope before she looked back over at Hinata. "I've seen you around, if I remember. You were at the party, weren't you?"

[shy_bird]

"Oh." She fidgeted slightly at the other woman's reply, feeling like an intruder. Why she'd asked, she didn't know, but it really hadn't been any of her business. But she couldn't help feeling like she understood the way it felt to have difficulties with your father.

The shift in topic, however, was appreciated, especially now that she could place where she'd recently seen Nanao. "And um, yes, I was. For a few minutes. I...left early." She surprised herself to realise she was smiling and blushing slightly. Walking with Kiba had been fun, and she had enjoyed his company. "I went for a walk with Kiba-kun and the dogs, so I really didn't get to meet anyone."

[ise_nanao_chan]

Nanao noted the soft blush gracing Hinata's cheeks and felt her lips stretch into a smile. With Kiba, hm? She leaned down and tucked the letter into her bag, then slouched back against the wall again. "Kiba's really a good person, isn't he?"

[shy_bird]

She nodded. "He is." She glanced over at Nanao and tilted her head to the side. "Are you friends with him? Well, I mean, he seems to be friendly with everyone. He's like that. So I'm not really sure why I asked."

Well now she'd made things uncomfortable, she was sure. "...I'm sorry, I don't mean to be nosy."

[ise_nanao_chan]

Friends... Well, that's the ten million dollar question, isn't it?

Nanao chuckled softly and glanced down at the floor for a moment. "Yes. I consider him a friend."

And I don't think I consider him anything else BUT a friend...

"You're not being nosy. Not at all... He's easy to be friends with, but I'm sure you know that, since you went walking with him during the party."

For some reason, Nanao felt better than she had in days.

[shy_bird]

Hinata leaned against the wall, looking down at her feet and smiling softly. "He's very easy to be friends with, yes." Her cheeks turned dark and she shook her head quickly, embarrassed. "And um...that wasn't anything, really."

At least, she didn't think it was anything. He was kind to her, and had been her friend since they'd met, but that wasn't the same thing.

"He needed to walk the dogs, and I'm not...very comfortable with crowds. So... It wasn't anything, really."

[ise_nanao_chan]

Nanao felt the smile on her face widen a tiny bit. "I can understand not liking crowds, They're far too noisy. I don't like large groups either," she murmured, absently kicking at her bag. "I'd rather be with a few people at a time. Anything larger than four people and I get nervous."

She watched Hinata carefully as she spoke. She felt they shared some similarities, which pleased her to no end. Everyone she had met so far had been nice, but so vastly different than she was.

[shy_bird]

Nanao's answer surprised her. She'd begun to believe that, except for her and Neji, everyone in the building was outgoing and social. Or, at least, moreso than she could ever be.

"Four is a nice number," she agreed, nodding. "And you can see everyone, and don't get the feeling that someone secret is watching you."

She was definitely starting to be glad she'd run into the other woman. Finding someone who felt similarly was a welcome surprise.

[ise_nanao_chan]

Nanao nodded in complete agreement. "If I actually get a chance to be around others, I want a chance to talk to everyone. Really talk to them, not talk 'at' them." She had finally kicked her bag out of reach of her foot, but she blinked down at it as if she didn't realize she'd been doing it all along. She shrugged and offered Hinata a wry smile.

"My family was always one to live on appearances. We used to have these huge parties for my father's associates and friends, and I was always expected to attend, looking like the perfect daughter, all quiet and dutiful. When I was a little girl, I always thought it was fun, getting to dress up and sing for the guests, but I grew to hate it after a while."

For some reason, she didn't feel ackward telling Hinata this. If it'd been anyone else, she would've been mortified to find herself speaking so freely.

"Everyone has reasons for the things they dislike, I suppose..."

[shy_bird]

"My family, too," she said softly, leaning against the wall again and sliding down until she was sitting, knees bent and nearly pulled up under her chin. "On appearances, I mean. Although I never had to sing," she ammended, smiling a little at Nanao. "I usually did my best to not be seen."

And she'd been good at it, too. Hanabi hadn't seemed to mind the attention, and her father hadn't wanted her around anyway, so it was easy for Hinata to finds ways to make herself invisible while still being able to see everyone else.

But she was here now, and she wasn't ever going back to that. "I'm glad to be here now. It's ugly, and dirty, and I'm afraid the ceiling will fall everytime I close the door... But I really like it here. And there are a lot of interesting and nice people that I've met." Nanao included, although Hinata didn't quite know how to say so.

[ise_nanao_chan]

Nanao slid down slowly until she was resting on the balls of her feet, her back against the wall. "Be glad. Singing was not fun after you hit twelve. Not that it mattered, I was too busy to think about it." She pushed some loose hair behind her ear as she thought back for a moment.

"I still don't have a door on my closet, but it's moer like home here than living with my family ever was. I feel almost like I belong. Most everyone here IS nice, even if they sometimes make me wonder if I ended up living in an asylum..."

Nanao flashed a wide grin to her companion.

[shy_bird]

Hinata smiled and blushed. "Yes. I'm comfortable here, and feel safe. Although finding the, um...porn...on the door the other day was definitely rather awkward." She wondered who'd done that, still. Most likely it was the strange lady with the mohawk that she'd seen walking around sometimes; the woman scared her.

[ise_nanao_chan]

"Ah, yes. The porn. Yoruichi asked if she could have mine. Thankfully... I personally didn't think what mine showed was physically possible." Nanao chuckled again. Yes, she was definately glad she'd met someone so similar.