fic: "liberated"
Title: Liberated
Characters: Kiba, Hinata, Naruto
Word Count: 1,827
Rating: PG (Language)
Summary: Kiba doesn't know how good a friend he is. He probably never will.
Special Notes: Pairings dependent on perception.
There was a strange feeling amidst the rubble that was formerly Konoha. Kiba could only describe it as hesitant calm; people who knew the storm was over but were still looking over their shoulders for the backlash. The worst was over, that was for sure.
But there was still something not quite right. The air was still thick, like the dust hadn't settled yet. People were moving more cautiously than before, and not just because most of them had to step over piles of wood and broken trees just to step into their own, roofless homes. Kiba wasn't cautious though. He rode through the heaps of trash on his mighty steed like it was just another warm, sunny summer afternoon, and not the day after their city was reduced to a giant crater. Some people shot him warning looks, as if he was bringing bad karma by not being scared of this whole mess. Like he should be looking over his shoulder too.
He didn't have time for that. He was looking for someone.
And damn, she was only truly hard to find when you really wanted to see her. Any other time she would just cross your mind and there she was, bumping in to you on the street and apologizing profusely like she had just broken something priceless instead of hitting your shoulder. But now? Now that he just got the news that everyone else had apparently known hours ago but had not deigned to tell him, and he really, really needed to see her? Of course she was nowhere to be found. Of course.
It took him just a little longer than usual because of the new entanglement of smells. There was rust, burning wood, cleaning chemicals and decaying flesh overtaking the subtle scent of lavender and sandalwood he usually followed. When he found her, she was sitting cross-legged in a plain, grassy clearing, staring up at the sky and smelling like death and fire. He didn't like that scent on her. He liked the lavender much better.
He slid down Akamaru's side and landed gently on his feet, leaving no trace but an indent in the dry, crackling grass below him. He'd have liked to think that he could sneak up on her and maybe get her to squeak or at least move a little, but it was rather pointless since she already knew he was there. Motioning for Akamaru to sit still, he created more harsh patterns in the ground as he made his way over to his teammate. The closer he got, the lighter the air felt. It was like she was radiating an entirely different oxygen supply from the one behind him- the one full of tension and pain and disgust. He frowned. It was unsettling to him, and the giant knot in his stomach clenched tighter with confusion and worry.
But the confusion spinning in his gut didn't prevent him from landing on the grass beside her, or ignoring the scent of death on her, or asking her what was so damn interesting about that section of sky and why she hadn't checked in with him or Shino to tell them what had happened and why exactly he had to hear it from Shikamaru instead of her.
"I'm sorry," she said quietly, gazing up at the sky and not turning red or staring at her feet the way Kiba had predicted her to. She instead occupied herself with the sleeve of her jacket, picking loose threads off the sleeve just as a means to avoid looking at him. "I just had to think about some things."
It took Kiba a full minute to gather what she meant by that. When he did, he nodded slowly in realization and turned to focus on the sky as well. Suddenly, he didn't want to look at her either. "Yeah, I heard that, too," he said.
"Most people have," she muttered, abandoning her right sleeve and focusing on her left. Kiba's frown deepened. The heavy and depressing feel that usually would have accompanied those words was not in her voice at all. Instead, when he looked at her, she was smiling. Kiba found this most distressing of all.
Maybe she had finally cracked. Or maybe the atmosphere change in Konoha had the reverse effect on Hinata, who couldn't get any more worried and cautious than she was before and could only display notable change by acting happier. Or, more realistically, this could be a prelude to an inevitable delayed reaction, and she could explode into tears at any moment. That was the worst possibility of all; the longer she held it in the more terrible it would become later, and in Kiba's mind that translated into the best possible course of action being to coax it out of her gently, preventing an enormous breakdown and therefore, helping Hinata.
It was the perfect plan.
"So..." he began tentatively, trying to suppress the guilt that came with trying to make Hinata cry, "h-how do you feel? You know, about... that thing." He probably should have mentioned it directly if his goal was to make her cry, but he really didn't want to. After a few moments her smile grew, giving Kiba mixed feelings of apprehension and pleasure.
"Wonderful," she replied breathlessly, staring up at the sky. She turned to him excitedly, strands of hair whipping at her face and smiling in such a way he barely recognized her. "Kiba-kun, it feels wonderful. It's like..." she hunted for words for a moment, then just shook her head and sighed. "I really don't think I can explain it."
"Try," Kiba said slowly, his eyes trained on her. She was really worrying him now.
"It's like," she repeated, "It's like... for years I was carrying this really heavy thing around. And the longer I hid it, it just got bigger and heavier and harder to carry and made me say and do things," her voice got quicker and more strained, giving Kiba the impression it might be the beginning of the reaction he was trying to get and just realized he didn't want, but she released a deep breath and smiled again. "But it's gone now, I got rid of it, and I feel so liberated and wonderful and happy," she looked at the sky amazedly, as if it had solved all her problems, "because now that I don't have to carry it anymore I can finally just forget the stupid thing and- is this making any sense at all?" she added anxiously, finally noting the confused look on his face.
It took Kiba a moment after the sudden, tearless confession to realize he was being addressed, and nodded confidently. "Total sense," he assured her, raising his arm over her head to rest on her shoulder and causing her smile to resurface again.
"I didn't think you'd get it," she admitted quietly, going back to playing with her sleeve, "that's why I didn't go to you and Shino-kun right away."
Kiba gave her two quick pats on the shoulder, hopefully indicating she was forgiven and sat in silence as Akamaru enthusiastically chased a hovering butterfly a ways behind them. He believed Hinata was telling the truth. Not only because the lines of worry and sadness had disappeared from her face, and not only because her smiles had been as genuine as the giant smoldering crater behind them, but because he wanted to. He wanted to believe she was happier without Naruto dominating her thoughts. He wanted to believe she had cast the weight aside and could finally achieve with a happy, unchained life. He wanted to believe she was leaning against his shoulder now not because she was depressed, but because she was happy.
He also wanted to believe the reason he was happy right now was because his friend had confessed her love to someone else, and not because she had moved on.
"So," he said after a while, when the sun had moved considerably to the west and the sky was fading from blue to orange, "how did Neji feel about you spending the entire day alone out here?"
For the first time that day Hinata flushed pink with embarrassment and looked down at her feet ashamedly. "W-Well, actually... Um, Nii-san hasn't really let me out of his sight since yesterday... I-I kind of had to sneak out of the house in order to be by myself..." she admitted nervously, twiddling with her fingers and again refusing to look at him.
Kiba let out a loud, barking laugh and Hinata joined in with a stifled giggle until the pair heard a twig break behind them and snapped around reflexively. Naruto froze in shock, color rising in his cheeks and looking rather embarrassed that he had been caught. Flustered, he began to apologize hurriedly as Kiba jumped to his feet and Hinata's smile slowly receded back into her old embarrassed stare. All of a sudden Kiba was overcome with the very convincing urge to hit Naruto, partly because he had just found out that he had made his best friend suffer horribly for the past five years and partly because bringing her smile back was more important than the current arrangement of the blonde's limbs, but he was stopped. Hinata had gotten up and pulled on his shoulder, giving him a familiar look she gave him all the time on missions. He called it the "You're-Not-Allowed-To-Kill-Anyone" look.
Naruto, who Kiba just realized had apparently been talking the entire time, scratched the back of his neck nervously and finished his apologetic rambling. "So, you know, I was just, uh, wondering if I could, sorta, talk to Hinata for a minute?"
Kiba was on the verge of shouting a very definitive "Hell No!", when Hinata gently squeezed his arm and nodded carefully. With every step she took towards him Kiba's heart sank even further south into his stomach, filled with embarrassment and stupidity that he actually believed for a second that she might actually be over him. He should have known. He should have fucking known.
Even with the reassuring smile Hinata left him with before she disappeared with Naruto into the nearby grove of trees, Kiba couldn't help but be completely overwhelmed by the things he didn't know. He didn't know why he hadn't just punched Naruto in the gut and told him to fuck off and leave Hinata alone. He didn't know what either of them were saying (or doing- the very thought made Kiba's vision redden a little) on the other side of those trees. He didn't know why his ribcage was suddenly struggling to restrain his heart in his chest. He didn't know what would happen next year, or next week, or even twenty minutes from now.
What he did know was that if Naruto ever wanted to breathe through his face again, Hinata had better come back wearing the same smile she left with.
Characters: Kiba, Hinata, Naruto
Word Count: 1,827
Rating: PG (Language)
Summary: Kiba doesn't know how good a friend he is. He probably never will.
Special Notes: Pairings dependent on perception.
There was a strange feeling amidst the rubble that was formerly Konoha. Kiba could only describe it as hesitant calm; people who knew the storm was over but were still looking over their shoulders for the backlash. The worst was over, that was for sure.
But there was still something not quite right. The air was still thick, like the dust hadn't settled yet. People were moving more cautiously than before, and not just because most of them had to step over piles of wood and broken trees just to step into their own, roofless homes. Kiba wasn't cautious though. He rode through the heaps of trash on his mighty steed like it was just another warm, sunny summer afternoon, and not the day after their city was reduced to a giant crater. Some people shot him warning looks, as if he was bringing bad karma by not being scared of this whole mess. Like he should be looking over his shoulder too.
He didn't have time for that. He was looking for someone.
And damn, she was only truly hard to find when you really wanted to see her. Any other time she would just cross your mind and there she was, bumping in to you on the street and apologizing profusely like she had just broken something priceless instead of hitting your shoulder. But now? Now that he just got the news that everyone else had apparently known hours ago but had not deigned to tell him, and he really, really needed to see her? Of course she was nowhere to be found. Of course.
It took him just a little longer than usual because of the new entanglement of smells. There was rust, burning wood, cleaning chemicals and decaying flesh overtaking the subtle scent of lavender and sandalwood he usually followed. When he found her, she was sitting cross-legged in a plain, grassy clearing, staring up at the sky and smelling like death and fire. He didn't like that scent on her. He liked the lavender much better.
He slid down Akamaru's side and landed gently on his feet, leaving no trace but an indent in the dry, crackling grass below him. He'd have liked to think that he could sneak up on her and maybe get her to squeak or at least move a little, but it was rather pointless since she already knew he was there. Motioning for Akamaru to sit still, he created more harsh patterns in the ground as he made his way over to his teammate. The closer he got, the lighter the air felt. It was like she was radiating an entirely different oxygen supply from the one behind him- the one full of tension and pain and disgust. He frowned. It was unsettling to him, and the giant knot in his stomach clenched tighter with confusion and worry.
But the confusion spinning in his gut didn't prevent him from landing on the grass beside her, or ignoring the scent of death on her, or asking her what was so damn interesting about that section of sky and why she hadn't checked in with him or Shino to tell them what had happened and why exactly he had to hear it from Shikamaru instead of her.
"I'm sorry," she said quietly, gazing up at the sky and not turning red or staring at her feet the way Kiba had predicted her to. She instead occupied herself with the sleeve of her jacket, picking loose threads off the sleeve just as a means to avoid looking at him. "I just had to think about some things."
It took Kiba a full minute to gather what she meant by that. When he did, he nodded slowly in realization and turned to focus on the sky as well. Suddenly, he didn't want to look at her either. "Yeah, I heard that, too," he said.
"Most people have," she muttered, abandoning her right sleeve and focusing on her left. Kiba's frown deepened. The heavy and depressing feel that usually would have accompanied those words was not in her voice at all. Instead, when he looked at her, she was smiling. Kiba found this most distressing of all.
Maybe she had finally cracked. Or maybe the atmosphere change in Konoha had the reverse effect on Hinata, who couldn't get any more worried and cautious than she was before and could only display notable change by acting happier. Or, more realistically, this could be a prelude to an inevitable delayed reaction, and she could explode into tears at any moment. That was the worst possibility of all; the longer she held it in the more terrible it would become later, and in Kiba's mind that translated into the best possible course of action being to coax it out of her gently, preventing an enormous breakdown and therefore, helping Hinata.
It was the perfect plan.
"So..." he began tentatively, trying to suppress the guilt that came with trying to make Hinata cry, "h-how do you feel? You know, about... that thing." He probably should have mentioned it directly if his goal was to make her cry, but he really didn't want to. After a few moments her smile grew, giving Kiba mixed feelings of apprehension and pleasure.
"Wonderful," she replied breathlessly, staring up at the sky. She turned to him excitedly, strands of hair whipping at her face and smiling in such a way he barely recognized her. "Kiba-kun, it feels wonderful. It's like..." she hunted for words for a moment, then just shook her head and sighed. "I really don't think I can explain it."
"Try," Kiba said slowly, his eyes trained on her. She was really worrying him now.
"It's like," she repeated, "It's like... for years I was carrying this really heavy thing around. And the longer I hid it, it just got bigger and heavier and harder to carry and made me say and do things," her voice got quicker and more strained, giving Kiba the impression it might be the beginning of the reaction he was trying to get and just realized he didn't want, but she released a deep breath and smiled again. "But it's gone now, I got rid of it, and I feel so liberated and wonderful and happy," she looked at the sky amazedly, as if it had solved all her problems, "because now that I don't have to carry it anymore I can finally just forget the stupid thing and- is this making any sense at all?" she added anxiously, finally noting the confused look on his face.
It took Kiba a moment after the sudden, tearless confession to realize he was being addressed, and nodded confidently. "Total sense," he assured her, raising his arm over her head to rest on her shoulder and causing her smile to resurface again.
"I didn't think you'd get it," she admitted quietly, going back to playing with her sleeve, "that's why I didn't go to you and Shino-kun right away."
Kiba gave her two quick pats on the shoulder, hopefully indicating she was forgiven and sat in silence as Akamaru enthusiastically chased a hovering butterfly a ways behind them. He believed Hinata was telling the truth. Not only because the lines of worry and sadness had disappeared from her face, and not only because her smiles had been as genuine as the giant smoldering crater behind them, but because he wanted to. He wanted to believe she was happier without Naruto dominating her thoughts. He wanted to believe she had cast the weight aside and could finally achieve with a happy, unchained life. He wanted to believe she was leaning against his shoulder now not because she was depressed, but because she was happy.
He also wanted to believe the reason he was happy right now was because his friend had confessed her love to someone else, and not because she had moved on.
"So," he said after a while, when the sun had moved considerably to the west and the sky was fading from blue to orange, "how did Neji feel about you spending the entire day alone out here?"
For the first time that day Hinata flushed pink with embarrassment and looked down at her feet ashamedly. "W-Well, actually... Um, Nii-san hasn't really let me out of his sight since yesterday... I-I kind of had to sneak out of the house in order to be by myself..." she admitted nervously, twiddling with her fingers and again refusing to look at him.
Kiba let out a loud, barking laugh and Hinata joined in with a stifled giggle until the pair heard a twig break behind them and snapped around reflexively. Naruto froze in shock, color rising in his cheeks and looking rather embarrassed that he had been caught. Flustered, he began to apologize hurriedly as Kiba jumped to his feet and Hinata's smile slowly receded back into her old embarrassed stare. All of a sudden Kiba was overcome with the very convincing urge to hit Naruto, partly because he had just found out that he had made his best friend suffer horribly for the past five years and partly because bringing her smile back was more important than the current arrangement of the blonde's limbs, but he was stopped. Hinata had gotten up and pulled on his shoulder, giving him a familiar look she gave him all the time on missions. He called it the "You're-Not-Allowed-To-Kill-Anyone" look.
Naruto, who Kiba just realized had apparently been talking the entire time, scratched the back of his neck nervously and finished his apologetic rambling. "So, you know, I was just, uh, wondering if I could, sorta, talk to Hinata for a minute?"
Kiba was on the verge of shouting a very definitive "Hell No!", when Hinata gently squeezed his arm and nodded carefully. With every step she took towards him Kiba's heart sank even further south into his stomach, filled with embarrassment and stupidity that he actually believed for a second that she might actually be over him. He should have known. He should have fucking known.
Even with the reassuring smile Hinata left him with before she disappeared with Naruto into the nearby grove of trees, Kiba couldn't help but be completely overwhelmed by the things he didn't know. He didn't know why he hadn't just punched Naruto in the gut and told him to fuck off and leave Hinata alone. He didn't know what either of them were saying (or doing- the very thought made Kiba's vision redden a little) on the other side of those trees. He didn't know why his ribcage was suddenly struggling to restrain his heart in his chest. He didn't know what would happen next year, or next week, or even twenty minutes from now.
What he did know was that if Naruto ever wanted to breathe through his face again, Hinata had better come back wearing the same smile she left with.