endless_scrolls (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
endless_scrolls) wrote2013-06-03 09:15 pm
endless_scrolls) wrote2013-06-03 09:15 pm
On and On and On
Title On and On and On
Type: RP Thread
Fandom: AU!Naruto
Character(s): Tenten, Aburame Shino; brief mention of Inuzuka Kiba, Haruno Sakura, OC: Sarutobi Mei, OC: Shirou, OC: Sarutobi Katsuro
Pairing(s): Hints of Shino/Tenten
Warning(s): None
Disclaimer: I own only the part that I played in this.
Note: Thread taken from the CHILDHOOD SWEETHEARTS MEME over at![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
memebells.
Dedicated to: My love of the adorkable
Life, Tenten realized, revolved in circles.
When her parents died and she came under custody of her Uncle in China, the young girl never thought that she would step foot on the shores of Japan ever again. The means and the finances simply were not there to support such a trip. The business that Takashi ran would not allow it. Self-owned restaurants required a lot of attention and all of their combined efforts to stay afloat. But due to a series of circumstances and long-lost relatives, Tenten found herself on the steps of Konoha no Gakuen, one of Japan's most prestigious boarding schools, a full scholarship guiding her way towards the future. All the while, reconnecting her to the past.
It was daunting, at best. The transition from one language to the other was an easy shift to make. Like slipping on an old pair of gloves. Ones that still fit perfectly. For her, the words and the dialects came just as easily as breathing. Because they were a part of her, much like everything else from her childhood. But that didn't change the fact that it had been six years since she left. And the memories were still there around the edges of her consciousness.
She never expected to run into a familiar face, again, so soon. If at all.
"...Shino."
And like a shift in the tide, the memories began to flood into her thoughts. Of their days at the park or at the playground. Of open fields and ladybugs. And fireflies when the nights were cool and her parents were there to watch over them. Of birthdays spent in libraries and empty concert halls. And Christmas cards and Valentines that she would make for him every year because her family lived on love instead of money. Because no one else ever thought to do so themselves.
He was, in all essence, her best friend. Not in the same way, but nearly just as much as Lee. And she wasn't ready to face it all again, just yet. Wasn't prepared to face him.
And so, in steeling herself against the thought, she adjusted the strap of her back and rushed forward, head down and barely a thought offered to the young Aburame or his spiky-haired friend. There was just the need to get away and to place a wall between him and her so that she could catch her breath. So that they could do this properly away from the prying eyes of the masses...
It's been six years since he's seen her face. Five since he'd been missing her acutely every single day. Four since he'd hoped now and then he'd get a phone call saying she was coming back to Japan. Three since he could clearly recall all the lines and curves and edges and slopes that made the shape of her face.
And yet, suddenly, inexplicably... there she was.
Three years since he'd thought of Tenten. Three years of putting his mind and his heart in other places. Three years of Kiba at his side, three years of living alone with his father; three years of being completely in himself without a single thought for the friend he'd lost.
And now, she was here. Right in front of him. And then not right in front of him but bowling past him instead, rushing and diving away from him so fast he could barely muster the voice to call after her.
"Tenten--"
Tenten whom he had been lost for three years without. Tenten who had understood why it was the best thing in the world to just stand amongst lightening bugs and breathe. Tenten who had been the world to him, still defined girls as a concept for him, had told him she'd miss him before vanishing.
Now running past him and wrenching his heart nearly in half. He can barely move his feet to start moving after her--tries anyway, slow and dazed and almost disbelieving that it's really her.
It wasn't that she was trying to avoid him out of spite or some great desire to forget him and the past they shared. It was just too soon. It was just too public. The only other person, other than the administrators, that she'd met thus far was her roommate; a pink-haired girl named Sakura. And being a relative foreigner to these parts, having her first impression be an awkward reunion of sorts was not a step in the right direction.
Which was why the young woman found herself ducking into the nearest classroom.
Hearing the door close with a resounding slam of pressure, Tenten pressed herself back against the wall and finally allowed herself to breathe. When she opened her eyes to the world, though, she was assaulted with an equally familiar sight.
In an instant, she realized why the click of the heavy door sounded so deafening and infinite. After all, the walls were lined and padded to make the room echo for a reason. And as she pushed forward and moved up onto the first tier seats, Tenten's mind began filling in the blanks of another practice hall not too far away that she knew all too well. Where inanimate but lively voices had melded together in harmony, and where young fingers could barely stretch enough to hit the more complicated scales.
Where her mother had been alive.
But it wasn't the same. Nothing was. The carpeting was a deep maroon, not a faded cobalt. The piano that stood proud and strong at the center of the platform was an unfamiliar baby grand instead of the comforting upright that was so apart of her childhood. And instead of the stumbling but practiced fingers of a child pianist in training, Tenten had the scarred and swollen fingers of someone who had known nothing but battle in the last six years.
She was not the same person she was. So, how could the young girl expect Shino to be?
It's been a few years, true, but a glance at Kiba says he doesn't need to explain anything. So after a few seconds of fumbling, he takes off after her properly, abandoning his usual sedate pace to dodge through the crowd and follow her retreating back to...
...one of the practice halls.
That has him coming up short outside the door, not even trying the handle. Six years ago, he would have lunged in after her, but... it's not six years ago. It's now. And now she's a clearly frightened young woman he thinks he knows and knows he doesn't.
It's infinitely odd, staring at the door and knowing, for the first time in years, Tenten is on the other side. She's never been closer in all this time.
And he's never felt farther away from her.
It's a good five minutes before he carefully pushes the door open. He knows it's an intrusion. He knows she had specifically not stopped to catch up with him. But he knows that he'll regret not going in to see her, the way he regrets not keeping in touch and letting her vanish the first time.
"...Tenten?"
The click of the latch on the door announces his presence long before he ever thought to utter a word. Because who else would follow her in? Who else could it be? But rather be startled by the fact that he'd gone to so much trouble to chase after her - the fact that he abandoned his casual stride and chased after her at all - the young girl settled in accepting the simple truth: There was no more time to think and wonder. There were no more chances think of answers for every question that was written in his voice.
No more running away.
Breathing in deeply, there was no helping the small smile pulling at her lips. Because despite the circumstances and despite the situation - despite the fear - she was very much glad to see her friend again after so long. "...Hi, Shino."
An easy step back and a smooth turn of her body brought them both face to face for the first time, giving her an opportunity to really take in the sight of him. Of all the things that changed and all the things that remained the same in the six year separation. "Long time, no see, huh?"
He's taller. Quite tall, actually. And she's a woman. For their age, at least.
And for a few breaths, there's nothing to say that isn't a question, that isn't hurt, that isn't utterly confused because he knew she wouldn't be the girl who had left, but... part of him had hoped.
"...when... did you get back?"
He has to ask something. This, at least, is the sort of something that matches the continued blank tone of his voice, the absent nothingness that he always seems to be existing in since the divorce. It's something innocuous. A place to start.
Nothing emotional that might hurt to hear her answer.
There were many shades to the Aburame. She had learned that long ago. And, indeed, the same was still true now. Because only Shino could make the evened tone of his voice sound so familiar and oh so unnerving. Because it told a whole story. Only he could bring her relief and make her heart ache all in the same moment.
And it's in that instance that her smile fades the tiniest bit. That the realization comes that this very well could be the unhappy reunion she had feared.
Knowing that it might come down to that, the young girl shifted her gaze to the ground and began to quietly pop her knuckles, one by one. It was a nervous habit that had been all her own since childhood. And despite the amount of discipline and will she possessed and had learned through the years, it was just something that Tenten couldn't escape completely. Not during a moment like that.
A sigh followed soon after.
"...A few days ago." And she would be going back to China and her uncle at the end of the second term. But that could wait to be revealed. "I'll be starting here as a second year transfer student, today."
Type: RP Thread
Fandom: AU!Naruto
Character(s): Tenten, Aburame Shino; brief mention of Inuzuka Kiba, Haruno Sakura, OC: Sarutobi Mei, OC: Shirou, OC: Sarutobi Katsuro
Pairing(s): Hints of Shino/Tenten
Warning(s): None
Disclaimer: I own only the part that I played in this.
Note: Thread taken from the CHILDHOOD SWEETHEARTS MEME over at
memebells.Dedicated to: My love of the adorkable
Life, Tenten realized, revolved in circles.
When her parents died and she came under custody of her Uncle in China, the young girl never thought that she would step foot on the shores of Japan ever again. The means and the finances simply were not there to support such a trip. The business that Takashi ran would not allow it. Self-owned restaurants required a lot of attention and all of their combined efforts to stay afloat. But due to a series of circumstances and long-lost relatives, Tenten found herself on the steps of Konoha no Gakuen, one of Japan's most prestigious boarding schools, a full scholarship guiding her way towards the future. All the while, reconnecting her to the past.
It was daunting, at best. The transition from one language to the other was an easy shift to make. Like slipping on an old pair of gloves. Ones that still fit perfectly. For her, the words and the dialects came just as easily as breathing. Because they were a part of her, much like everything else from her childhood. But that didn't change the fact that it had been six years since she left. And the memories were still there around the edges of her consciousness.
She never expected to run into a familiar face, again, so soon. If at all.
"...Shino."
And like a shift in the tide, the memories began to flood into her thoughts. Of their days at the park or at the playground. Of open fields and ladybugs. And fireflies when the nights were cool and her parents were there to watch over them. Of birthdays spent in libraries and empty concert halls. And Christmas cards and Valentines that she would make for him every year because her family lived on love instead of money. Because no one else ever thought to do so themselves.
He was, in all essence, her best friend. Not in the same way, but nearly just as much as Lee. And she wasn't ready to face it all again, just yet. Wasn't prepared to face him.
And so, in steeling herself against the thought, she adjusted the strap of her back and rushed forward, head down and barely a thought offered to the young Aburame or his spiky-haired friend. There was just the need to get away and to place a wall between him and her so that she could catch her breath. So that they could do this properly away from the prying eyes of the masses...
It's been six years since he's seen her face. Five since he'd been missing her acutely every single day. Four since he'd hoped now and then he'd get a phone call saying she was coming back to Japan. Three since he could clearly recall all the lines and curves and edges and slopes that made the shape of her face.
And yet, suddenly, inexplicably... there she was.
Three years since he'd thought of Tenten. Three years of putting his mind and his heart in other places. Three years of Kiba at his side, three years of living alone with his father; three years of being completely in himself without a single thought for the friend he'd lost.
And now, she was here. Right in front of him. And then not right in front of him but bowling past him instead, rushing and diving away from him so fast he could barely muster the voice to call after her.
"Tenten--"
Tenten whom he had been lost for three years without. Tenten who had understood why it was the best thing in the world to just stand amongst lightening bugs and breathe. Tenten who had been the world to him, still defined girls as a concept for him, had told him she'd miss him before vanishing.
Now running past him and wrenching his heart nearly in half. He can barely move his feet to start moving after her--tries anyway, slow and dazed and almost disbelieving that it's really her.
It wasn't that she was trying to avoid him out of spite or some great desire to forget him and the past they shared. It was just too soon. It was just too public. The only other person, other than the administrators, that she'd met thus far was her roommate; a pink-haired girl named Sakura. And being a relative foreigner to these parts, having her first impression be an awkward reunion of sorts was not a step in the right direction.
Which was why the young woman found herself ducking into the nearest classroom.
Hearing the door close with a resounding slam of pressure, Tenten pressed herself back against the wall and finally allowed herself to breathe. When she opened her eyes to the world, though, she was assaulted with an equally familiar sight.
In an instant, she realized why the click of the heavy door sounded so deafening and infinite. After all, the walls were lined and padded to make the room echo for a reason. And as she pushed forward and moved up onto the first tier seats, Tenten's mind began filling in the blanks of another practice hall not too far away that she knew all too well. Where inanimate but lively voices had melded together in harmony, and where young fingers could barely stretch enough to hit the more complicated scales.
Where her mother had been alive.
But it wasn't the same. Nothing was. The carpeting was a deep maroon, not a faded cobalt. The piano that stood proud and strong at the center of the platform was an unfamiliar baby grand instead of the comforting upright that was so apart of her childhood. And instead of the stumbling but practiced fingers of a child pianist in training, Tenten had the scarred and swollen fingers of someone who had known nothing but battle in the last six years.
She was not the same person she was. So, how could the young girl expect Shino to be?
It's been a few years, true, but a glance at Kiba says he doesn't need to explain anything. So after a few seconds of fumbling, he takes off after her properly, abandoning his usual sedate pace to dodge through the crowd and follow her retreating back to...
...one of the practice halls.
That has him coming up short outside the door, not even trying the handle. Six years ago, he would have lunged in after her, but... it's not six years ago. It's now. And now she's a clearly frightened young woman he thinks he knows and knows he doesn't.
It's infinitely odd, staring at the door and knowing, for the first time in years, Tenten is on the other side. She's never been closer in all this time.
And he's never felt farther away from her.
It's a good five minutes before he carefully pushes the door open. He knows it's an intrusion. He knows she had specifically not stopped to catch up with him. But he knows that he'll regret not going in to see her, the way he regrets not keeping in touch and letting her vanish the first time.
"...Tenten?"
The click of the latch on the door announces his presence long before he ever thought to utter a word. Because who else would follow her in? Who else could it be? But rather be startled by the fact that he'd gone to so much trouble to chase after her - the fact that he abandoned his casual stride and chased after her at all - the young girl settled in accepting the simple truth: There was no more time to think and wonder. There were no more chances think of answers for every question that was written in his voice.
No more running away.
Breathing in deeply, there was no helping the small smile pulling at her lips. Because despite the circumstances and despite the situation - despite the fear - she was very much glad to see her friend again after so long. "...Hi, Shino."
An easy step back and a smooth turn of her body brought them both face to face for the first time, giving her an opportunity to really take in the sight of him. Of all the things that changed and all the things that remained the same in the six year separation. "Long time, no see, huh?"
He's taller. Quite tall, actually. And she's a woman. For their age, at least.
And for a few breaths, there's nothing to say that isn't a question, that isn't hurt, that isn't utterly confused because he knew she wouldn't be the girl who had left, but... part of him had hoped.
"...when... did you get back?"
He has to ask something. This, at least, is the sort of something that matches the continued blank tone of his voice, the absent nothingness that he always seems to be existing in since the divorce. It's something innocuous. A place to start.
Nothing emotional that might hurt to hear her answer.
There were many shades to the Aburame. She had learned that long ago. And, indeed, the same was still true now. Because only Shino could make the evened tone of his voice sound so familiar and oh so unnerving. Because it told a whole story. Only he could bring her relief and make her heart ache all in the same moment.
And it's in that instance that her smile fades the tiniest bit. That the realization comes that this very well could be the unhappy reunion she had feared.
Knowing that it might come down to that, the young girl shifted her gaze to the ground and began to quietly pop her knuckles, one by one. It was a nervous habit that had been all her own since childhood. And despite the amount of discipline and will she possessed and had learned through the years, it was just something that Tenten couldn't escape completely. Not during a moment like that.
A sigh followed soon after.
"...A few days ago." And she would be going back to China and her uncle at the end of the second term. But that could wait to be revealed. "I'll be starting here as a second year transfer student, today."