#alright ok now go forth . watch the movie again. this is an order /j | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

silverfootstepswrites · 6 years ago

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Equinox: Spring [1]

The snow began to melt towards the end of February. The nights were still bitterly cold and the trees were still barren. Icicles hung from the edges of the roof. Sakura could hear Kiba knocking them down outside as she stirred the soup in a lazy figure eight. There was a knock on the window. Sakura looked up in time to see Kiba waving at her before he went back to work.

She rubbed her ankle with her foot. Leaned her hip against the counter. When the soup began to bubble, she turned the heat down.

A few minutes later, she heard Kiba stamping on the steps out back. He huffed and puffed as he stamped over the threshold.

“Alright. I checked the gutters too. Unless you decide to blow up your house, you should be good for a while,” Kiba declared. He stepped out of his boots before he walked over to her. He had been on the receiving end of more than one scolding for tracking mud into the house. Leaning over her shoulder, he took a few sniffs of the soup simmering on the burner.

“Smells good,” he commented.

“If you can sit still for like… ten minutes, you’re welcome to have some,” Sakura offered.

Kiba turned his head and nuzzled against the top of her head. She let him. For about three seconds. Before she whacked his arm with the ladle.

“Hey. Wolf brain,” she reminded him.

“The deal was no licking. I’m being good,” Kiba replied, his voice bordering on a whine. He rubbed his cheek against her for another moment before he pulled away. He reached past her to snatch a stray piece of chicken breast off the cutting board. He grinned as he gobbled it down.

“Besides, I can’t stay. Gotta hit the road before it gets too dark,” Kiba reminded her.

Sakura turned around to look over the poster next to the refrigerator. It had been Kiba’s yuletide gift to her. It laid out all the lunar cycles of the new year, along with the flowers that came into season during each month. It was nice that she didn’t have to pull out her phone every time she tried to figure out when the weres would be busy.

“So, basically, this is like some kind of werewolf playdate?” Sakura asked.

Kiba wrinkled his nose as he thought. He had explained to her that he was driving his nephews out to meet up with some of the other packs in the area. It was good opportunity for the pups to learn how to socialize with their kind. And it was nice to rub elbows with the other weres. There was less fighting if the different packs already knew each other.

“…. kinda. I guess,” Kiba relented. He rubbed the back of his neck. And he stood there, shuffling his feet and avoiding her gaze. It couldn’t have been more obvious that he wanted something.

“What?”

Kiba stretched his arms out to the sides. “Can I get a hug for good luck?”

Sakura stared at him.

“Please?”

She set the ladle down. “Alright, you goof.”

Kiba swept her up into his arms, hugging her against his chest. Her feet left the floor, which she had grown to accept as sort of inevitable. He nuzzled her cheeks and temples, snuffling so hard that he sounded a little like Pakkun. Sakura tolerated this for a few seconds. When her patience ran out, she bit the tip of his nose. Kiba laughed.

“Alright. You’ve got all the luck you need. Put me down,” she told him.

Kiba did. Because he had learned that after biting was one of her pinches. And those were surprisingly painful.

“We’ll be back in a week,” he said.

“Be good,” she responded.

She stood in the doorway, watching him as he got into his truck. His shoulders rose to his ears as he gave an exaggerated shiver. And then he rubbed his hands up and down his arms before pointing at the house. Sakura leaned against the doorway. Stuck her tongue out at him in defiance. Kiba made a face at her. He hurried to shift the truck into gear to back out of the driveway. He raised his hand in greeting before he headed down the street.

Sakura drove up to Empire City about once a week. Kakuzu always remarked on how much money she was spending on gas and tolls.

“You offering to pay?” Sakura demanded, holding out her hand. Kakuzu looked from her hand to her face. And then responded by slowly giving her the middle finger. They snorted together.

“You can’t be this cranky. Not when I’ve got this for you,” Sakura then said, hitting the spacebar. A syncopated synth began beeping out of the speakers. Followed by an electric piano. And then came her signature sound: D-J Bunny in an echoing voice.

Despite his glare, Kakuzu began bobbing his head along to the beat.

The door opened. Temari’s head popped in, also bouncing up and down in time to the music. She flashed Sakura a thumb’s up. Sakura blew her a kiss in response.

When she visited Madara to play the track, his head remained quite still. He sat in his chair, one leg crossed over the other, arms folded across his chest. But when the second verse hit, the bass thrummed low. Madara gave a couple nods. He made an ‘ok’ sign with his right hand before recrossing his arms.

“I like this. Can I have it?” Madara asked once the song ended.

“Give me 6%,” Sakura requested.

“4.”

“6.”

“….5% and your usual up front,” Madara negotiated. He held his hand out. Sakura clucked her tongue, pointing at his gloves. Heaving a sigh, Madara peeled his right glove off to reveal his clawed fingers. His skin darkened toward the tips, almost like he had dipped them into ink.

Sakura reached across the desk to shake his hand. His palm was hot. Madara flashed a smile, eyes glowing bright red for a second before they faded back to black.

“For a demon, you’re pretty shitty at making deals, boss,” Sakura teased as their hands pulled apart. Madara ignored the jab as he hit the spacebar to replay the song. His foot tapped along to the beat. Polished Italian leather against polished tile. He pulled his glove back on.

Sakura tilted her head as she looked him over. Madara was handsome. Anyone with eyes could see that. It baffled her why he wasn’t modeling or acting. A face like that would get him far. So she asked him. Madara was always an open book.

“Why am I doing this? Think carefully, darling,” answered Madara. He pointed above him, at the lines of gold and platinum records that hung in black frames.

“Think of how many songs we’ve released. Think of all the concerts. Think of all the desire that generates. I’m feasting every day,” he pointed out. And then he patted his flat stomach.

“Yeah, but people go crazy over movie stars too,” Sakura protested. Madara wagged his gloved finger.

“Something about music drives people insane. The lust it generates…. well… you don’t look this good after 1000 without a healthy supply of sexual energy. I’m bathing in it every day, Bunny,” Madara spelled out. And he patted his smooth cheek as he spoke.

“Swimming in that good, good incubus botox?”

“If you want to be inelegant about it, yes,” replied Madara, head still bobbing.

“Plus, you’ve got a bunch of half-sirens making all those songs for you,” Sakura mused, mostly to herself. Madara winked at her. His tail curled over his shoulder, smooth and pointed at the tip.

“6%,” Sakura tried again.

Madara laughed, throwing his head back. “You little devil, you."

Her new track had put Madara in a particularly generous mood. He had bought dinner for her and the other producers. Kakuzu, of course, ordered the filet mignon and lobster combo, shameless as ever. They chatted and laughed in the fancy restaurant. When they parted ways, Sakura drove Temari back to her apartment in the west end of the city. Temari fumbled for her keys in her purse as Sakura parked out front.

“Thanks, Bunny,” Temari said.

“Yeah. Of course, Tem.”

Temari opened up the car door, planted one foot on the sidewalk. And then she paused. Turning her head back to Sakura, she glanced around. In a low voice, Temari asked, “Any word from…. you know?”

“Who, Voldemort?” Sakura retorted. Temari squinted at her.

“No, Tem. No word. He’ll show when he shows,” sighed Sakura.

Temari grimaced. “I don’t envy you, girl. He’s a mess. A hot mess…. but a mess,” Temari declared. And then she got out of the car. As Temari shut the door, Sakura lowered the window. She leaned over to peek out at her friend. It amazed Sakura how Temari managed to stand in those ridiculous heels sober, much less drunk.

“Seriously…. hot mess,” added Temari.

“Good night, Tem,” was all Sakura said.

“Yeah, yeah.”

Sakura lingered to watch Temari scan her keycard to get into the building before she drove off.

The only alcohol she’d had all night was a sip of Madara’s sangria. Her head felt clear as she pulled onto the highway. She turned the radio up a little louder before she switched lanes. The heater thrummed at full blast against the cold night. The bright green signs that announced each exit rushed past. The numbers grew lower and lower as she drifted farther from the city.

By now, her body knew exactly when to get off the highway. She knew how to navigate those dark, winding roads. And it almost didn’t surprise her when she glimpsed a shadow in her side view mirror as she drove into town. It followed her as she made a left turn. It paced back and forth on the sidewalk as she pulled into the driveway. Her tires crackled over the gravel.

“Hey, Sheriff,” Sakura greeted him as she got out of her car. She locked it before she crunched up the path to her front porch. Keys jangled together as she unlocked the screen door. Kakashi only stayed long enough to watch her lock the patio door behind her. He had nagged her about doing so on more than one occasion. It still didn’t make much sense to her, since she always locked the inner door. But he seemed to think it was important.

Sakura glimpsed the grim running down the road, deeper into the woods near her house. She knew that he would do a loop of the whole town. It was the last thing he did before heading home each night.

It was barely past 10. But for some reason, she felt exhausted. She sat on top of the closed toilet lid as she scrubbed eyeliner and foundation off her face. She rubbed lavender lotion onto her arms as she waited for water to boil for her chamomile tea. And she fell asleep before she managed to finish her drink.

When she woke, there was a brief moment of panic that she had slept the entire day away. Because it was dark outside. But, as she squinted through the blinds, she realized that it was just very overcast. Rain began to pour down on Old Pines about an hour later. She listened to the water drip off the roof, dribbling out of the gutter and onto the street. She climbed up to the loft, just to hear better. And then she set her metronome to match the tempo of the rain, lying on the rug as she soaked in the sounds.

When noon rolled around, her stomach began to growl. There was food in the fridge, but none of it seemed particularly appealing at the moment. Sakura threw her raincoat on before running to her car. Ino’s cafe glowed in the dreary rain. Gerbera daisies had begun to bloom all around the front of the shop. A startling pop of color against the still-brown grass.

The wind chimes clanged together as Sakura hurried into the cafe. She nearly ran into someone carrying a plastic cup.

“Whoa!”

“Sorry!” Sakura yelped, her boots squeaking to a stop.

Itachi held his strawberry smoothie high above his head. In his right hand was a light blue box with the logo of Ino’s cafe. He was all dressed up in a black suit and a camel coat.

“Hi,” Sakura greeted him.

“Hi.” He copied her tone. And then he smiled at her. Eyes lighting up.

“Haven’t seen you around lately. I guess you’ve been busy,” Itachi then said. He moved to the side as another customer made her way out of the cafe.

“Yeah. You know. Writing songs. Although, you’re not getting anywhere near my new notebook,” Sakura joked. His smile faded.

“Seriously, I’m so-”

Sakura put her hand on his arm. “Hey. Relax. I’m kidding.”

For a moment, she worried. Because his eyes unfocused a little. As she watched, he blinked a few times, shaking his head a little. When his eyes opened again, they were clear and bright. She felt a little proud of him.

“Oh, I meant to text you. Do you like cheese and wine?” Itachi inquired.

“I don’t know. Do fish like to swim?” she replied. Itachi didn’t answer right away. His forehead wrinkled a little as he seriously considered her answer.

“Well…. they kind of have to… to not die, right?” he responded after some thought.

Laughing, Sakura nudged his arm. “Good point. I like wine and cheese, okay?”

“Big tech company is throwing a cheese and wine fundraiser. Do you want to be my plus one?” Itachi asked. Sakura could feel Ino’s stare sizzling into the back of her head as the fairy, undoubtedly, strained to hear her answer.

“Hm… I don’t know. That sounds…. boring,” Sakura hedged. A fundraiser was just a bunch of stuffy rich people in expensive jewelry pretending to care about whatever charity they were donating to. Madara had made her go to precisely two with him before she had threatened to revolt.

To her surprise, Itachi nodded. “Oh yeah. It’s super boring.”

Sakura stared at him.

“Well, if you’re there, that’ll be at least one person with a real personality that I can talk to. It’s really to keep me sane. And free wine and cheese for you. My company’s paying,” Itachi explained. He took a sip of his smoothie.

“It’s a heated rooftop bar. If the wine sucks, there’s an open bar,” he added, reading the hesitation in her face.

“I’m in,” she said right away. Itachi chuckled.

Sakura mimed typing with her thumbs. “Text me details or I’ll forget,” she told him. Itachi nodded. And then glanced down at his watch. The apology was already in his eyes as he looked back up at her.

“You look busy. Go,” she urged. Itachi nodded. She gave a light push to his chest before she moved past him. To where Ino stood at the counter. Ino’s eyes glittered as they darted from Itachi to Sakura. She held an iced coffee out to Sakura.

“Hel-loooo, Miss Popular,” Ino teased. Sakura shrugged. She took a long slurp of her drink.

Itachi held the door for someone on his way out. Ino and Sakura’s eyes were drawn to the noise. Just in time to see Kakashi walk into the cafe. Two dogs trailed after him, each wearing a tiny red poncho. A squeal rose up Sakura’s throat. The dogs noticed her before Kakashi did. Biscuit’s tail began wagging back and forth, slapping Kakashi’s thigh with fury. Bull’s butt just sort of vibrated as his stubby tail moved too.

“Got you, Sheriff,” Ino called out as she went to make his coffee.

“Thanks, Ino,” Kakashi said in response.

And then he smiled at Sakura. “Hey.” He held an arm out to her. Her greeting hug was light because there was still water dripping off his jacket. And then she bent to give the appropriate pets and baby talk to Bull and Biscuit.

“Hey. Keep your muddy feet off her,” Kakashi scolded when Biscuit tried to paw at her legs.

“Kakashi, why don’t you just buy them little rain boots? I think you can get them for like… 10 bucks,” Sakura suggested. And Kakashi gaped at her for a long moment before he shut his mouth. Then, in a low, conspiring voice, he asked, “They make those?”

Ino nearly sloshed hot coffee all over herself as she burst into laughter.

Life was peaceful. Almost mundane as March crept in. The cold seemed reluctant to go, like a houseguest that lingered too long after a party had clearly ended. The pine trees shed the white coat of snow they had worn for most of the season. And the last bits of snow pushed to the sides of the roads finally melted into dirty puddles.

Sakura leaned against the window in Ino’s cafe. She gnawed on a straw as she stared at her laptop screen. Ino dropped off another ice coffee that she hadn’t ordered. And then Ino’s weight leaned against her shoulder.

“You look annoyed,” commented Ino.

“I hate writing lyrics,” Sakura grumbled.

“Not your strong suit, huh?” Ino guessed.

“Mm.”

Ino rested the tray against her hip. “Well… good luck, I guess.”

“Mm,” Sakura said again.

After making little progress, Sakura shut her laptop. Sighing loudly, she got to her feet. She had hoped that moving to somewhere new would shake things up. Kickstart her brain. All she had managed to do was drain her computer battery.

“Nothing?” asked Ino as Sakura approached the counter. Sakura stuffed some bills into the tip jar, ignoring Ino’s glare.

“Go take a nap. You’re exhausted,” Ino urged her. And then she pushed off the counter. A few seconds later, the cafe door opened. A customer walked inside.

“Thanks, Ino,” Sakura called. Ino’s hand rose from behind the espresso machine. Then there was a loud whir as the machine began foaming milk.

Sakura walked outside. Her laptop secured inside her backpack. The ground was still busy soaking up the melted snow in many parts of town. Her boots did a good job of navigating through the muddiest patches. Hands shoved into the pockets of her jacket, Sakura began the short walk home. Even the thin sunlight that poked out through the clouds was welcome after months of grey, snowy days.

She had walked a lot when she lived in Empire City too. More out of necessity than anything. Because parking was expensive and almost impossible to find during certain times of the day. But Sakura liked walking. It gave her time to think in a way that driving didn’t. Plus the wind helped clear her mind, even as her cheeks began to turn cold.

As Sakura turned the corner onto her street, she squinted. There was a black car parked across the street from her house. She had seen it too many times not to recognize it. Her heart began to race, even as her steps slowed.

Hidan always joked that Tobirama almost looked like he was a CG character. Like he was a little too good-looking to fit in anywhere. This was a pretty accurate overall description of Tobirama, though.

'Sharp nose, sharper jaw, and sharpest eyes’, Madara always listed in that order.

Tobirama sat on the hood of his car. She recognized his broad shoulders, even from the end of the block. He ran his hand through his hair before he looked around. It was silver, tinged just a little blue. He glanced down at his phone’s glowing screen.

Sakura was almost tip-toeing as she neared her house. He still hadn’t spotted her. His legs were stretched out in front of him, just the heels of his boots resting on the asphalt. His feet moved back and forth, the tops moving apart and then clicking together. She had the feeling that he had been waiting out there for a while.

She sucked in a deep breath, eyes drifting down as she tried to come up with a plan. It had been such a long time since she had seen him. And even though he had said in his email that he wasn’t mad, she couldn’t stop herself from worrying. She had sort of stolen his futon. And blocked his number. And not responded to any of his emails.

“Sakura.”

Her eyes flew up from the sidewalk. To his face. Her stomach lurched.

He was looking over his shoulder at her. A smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Sakura.” He said her name again.

His mouth stretched into a grin, revealing his top teeth. Eyes squinting into half-moons. Sakura took a few steps closer. There was a bouquet of lilies sitting on the hood of his car too. Dark pink with the edges of each petal fading to white. Her throat felt clogged.

He got to his feet.

“Tobirama.” His name came out as a croak.

He hurried the rest of the way to her.

The inside of her head got a little fuzzy as he wrapped his arms around her. His cologne smelled so good. She took a deep breath, pressing her face to the front of his gray sweater. His leather jacket creaked a little. His hands linked against her lower back. He felt cold.

“I’m sorry. Whatever I said or did. I’m sorry,” he said. Rocking them back and forth.

She shook her head. She didn’t trust her voice to come out right at all.

“I should’ve come back faster. I’m sorry,” Tobirama added. She loved the way his voice vibrated out through his chest. Into her cheek and ear. Like his voice was flowing through her veins.

Sakura let out a shaky sigh. Hands slipping into his jacket to rest against his chest.

“Are you still mad at me?” he then asked.

Sakura nodded. And Tobirama laughed. His hands rubbed up and down her back.

“I thought so,” he chuckled.

#writing #equinox #equinox: spring #multisaku #tobisaku #itasaku #kibasaku #kakasaku #hello i'm back #it feels good to write

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