Knitting...

[Guest Rara-chan]

Knit one, pearl two.

Yes, Hikoku was knitting. In the back of his tiny apartment, Hikoku sat curled up on a beanbag in a rather cat-like position, concentrating intently on the pink and purple yarn before him. While most teenage boys would look strange with knitting needles in their hands and a half-finished scarf in their lap, Hikoku looked no more out of place than a monkey in a tree.

There was a mewing from across the room. The Shinobi looked up for a moment, his eyes darting about the room. "Hai, Hai.” He murmured and went back to the scarf. It was a labor of love for a friend of his, an albino girl with whom he had struck a remarkable friendship.

She was like a sister, really. They were close; so close that Hikoku – although trying and failing rather heroically not to make a habit of it – put up with her ridiculous requests that he use his Ninjutsu to transform into cute things like rabbits and cats. Often, people pointed out how strange they looked at each other's side. He, a soft-spoken and overall mature and rather close-up fellow; and she, an over-exuberant, cherubic, loud, eccentric and almost feline-like female. Of course, no matter how much he denied it, Hikoku enjoyed her company over than of anybody else's.

"Gaarg… Hoshi-chan… Why can't you like simple things like stripes?” Hikoku adjusted himself in his seat as he manipulated the needles into impossible positions, twisting his body to accommodate the movements of his hands. For all of the natural look he got while knitting, Hikoku was no knitting-circle regular. He growled in frustration, ignoring the mewing, as it grew louder and more panicked.

Finally, at the sound of a dull thud, Hikoku chucked is unfinished project down and crossed the room, reaching under a dresser and grabbing something fuzzy. A wince and a tug later, and Hikoku was back to knitting, a small kitten sleeping in his lap, wrapped up in the scarf. The females in the boy's life were too much trouble…

Hours later, the scarf was done and Hikoku was sleeping just as soundly as the creature curled atop his legs. He grunted softly as he awoke, the aching in his back becoming apparent as soon as awareness hit him.

"Nnng…” He slowly arose from his seat, cradling the cat in his arms. Without anything better to do, Hikoku went to look out the window, scanning the streets of the village he had come to know as home. He'd been living in this apartment ever since he had moved away from the nearby lodging village and into the Hidden Sound.

Sure, he missed his mother and friends, but his goal in life was not something that could be taken lightly. He'd see the precious people in his life again, anyways. The chance to become a Shinobi was not one that presented its self every waking minute.

"Did I make the right decision, Okaa-sama?” His gaze slipped to a simple photograph of the woman that stood on the windowsill, leaning against the glass for support. She looked just like her son, with black hair that she had to clip back to avoid it falling in her face. She had the same blue eyes and the same milky skin, but her expression spoke volumes of kindness. The solemnity that hung around Hikoku was a trait he had inherited from his father, a man of which the boy's memories were vague and unclear. He only knew that the man supported his family from afar.

Well, he knew that and the fact that one august, the checks started getting a lot smaller and the Yusuke name started getting a lot more popular. After that, both Oyume and Hikoku had given up on his return. At least they were still on his mind, if only at the back of it.

"Whatever son his new love has borne him will never amount to me.” Hikoku clenched a fist. His jealously of whomever his father now shared his life with was clear; Hikoku did nothing whatsoever to hide it. And even with the jealously, his feelings towards the man were mixed and overwhelmingly bitter. But, that man was his father. Should he have not made at least a miniscule effort to inform his previous family of his changing path?

Hikoku released his fists and set the now-awake kitten down on the floor, watching her play with the scarf he had taken so much care to knit. With a roll of his eyes, he wandered off in search of something to wrap or put it in. His search produced a small brown box; it was nothing special but it's what's inside that counts, right?

And so, our hero rescued his gift from his cat, packed it away with the care a mother might take with her child and called it quits for the day. As he climbed into his bed, Hikoku couldn't help but smile. Yep, Hoshi was going to love her scarf.

Ooc; Yeah… >> Random moment of bored-ness. –coughsandslinksaway-