A Dash of Chili Powder

10

Amaya squeaked uncharacteristically, faintly hearing the fall of Yuki and that strange Vell boy, only barely noticing one of the newcomers. Slowly, very slowly, she turned to look up at the tall guy, cringing just slightly at his look of disapproval. That made her growl: her sudden sensitivity to a person's expression. 

However, she reasoned, this could very well be an effect from her dear friend's sudden collapse. So, she turned her whole body to face this... Rage, was it? and made sure her royal purple eyes glared into his own peachy ones. His presence was beginning to irritate her and she had to get to Yuki as soon as she could. 

"Have you come to-" She stopped herself short and examined him further. He hadn't come to retrieve her or the others. No. On the contrary, he came in search of his friend. She gave the smallest of sighs and turned again, taking a small step. "He shouldn't be too far. He was right behind me."

She removed her scarf, sensing that the horrid scent had dissipated. She ran her blunt fingers through her very layered and unnaturally bright purple hair, adjusting her headband absentmindedly. This boy was still here. She frowned, if only just, and turned again, unsure of what to do. Again, uncharacteristically.

In the midst of rushing nurses and loud, quickening then slowing beeps, swift changes of bandages, and even swifter changes of saline IVs, Yuki awoke with a sharp intake of breath, joltin into a sitting position. Only, she fell back against her bed with quite the heave thump. She groaned.

Everything was a painfully bright shade of white, an almost institutional color. Every cabinet was painted with brown or grey. If you were lucky, maybe even a soft blue or periwinkle. The fluorescent lights made no effort to calm all this insanity. Instead, it made it worse.

Another groan.

A familiar burning sensation flared across her side and up her chest, around her arms, and finally at her forehead. She hissed, lifting a hand to remedy the problem. It hurt even more when she touched it. 

From the corner of her eye, she noticed a slumping, grey-haired man talking to a kindly nurse, his tone smooth and so very comforting... Turning her head just enough to view the man, mentally putting off the pain, her heart skipped with glee and her bi-colored eyes began to water. It was Kakashi-tousan. She smiled as widely as she could without hurting herself.

When she opened her mouth to speak, the tall jounin turned towards her and he, too, smiled a hidden smile. His daughter, as unrelated as she may be, was awake.

Gracie

[This took too long, but my mom stole my computer. >.>'' Sorry. >A<]

Rage couldn't help but be stunned. It had taken years for both Scythe and Awaji to understand his nonverbal communication; Vell still couldn't gauge what the mute teen was trying to say through expression alone. Yet this girl had deciphered his unspoken words in such detail in a glance. Rage looked her over as she pulled off her scarf, eyes narrowing slightly, as if trying to see into her soul and discover her true nature.

To his disappointment, she'd closed herself up tight. For whatever reason.

"Oi, Rage-kun," a voice crackled from the communicator on Rage's neck, startling him a little. He'd forgotten he had it on. "I'll assume you're listening, since you couldn't answer if you wanted to," Scythe chuckled. "Come back to the hostpital, bud'. I'm here. I went to get Kakashi-san and found Vell-kun and Yuki-san unconscious on his doorstep. Vell-kun's beat up, but he's fine. Yuki-san...she looks bad. Head over here as soon as you can."

The radio buzzed out of focus and Rage looked to the short haired girl again. She was obviously stricken at the news, namely that of her friend. There was also a wildness in her purple eyes...she was controlling it, though, as it seemed.

Rage dipped his head to the girl, turned, and darted back into the forest on foot to return to the hospital.

Vell was brought back from dreams of a burly, bearded blond brute by something like a sledgehammer plowing into his stomach. "Senpaiiii! Wake up. Scythe-senpai says I can't go eat until he's sure you're okay," Awaji whined pitifully.

"I won't be okay if you end up popping my spleen," Vell choked.

"At least you're talking." The silver haired teen blinked, then shoved Awaji out of the way. Scythe leaned against the wall at the foot of the bed and smiled like he always did. "You had us worried, Vell-kun."

Vell's ear twitched irritably. "What where you so worried ab--" Bed? Wait. Why was he in a bed? Vell looked around and realized that he was in a hospital room. "What happened? I got the brat to Onii-san's house, then..."

Scythe shrugged from the wall. "Then we found you passed out on his stoop, the both of you drenched in black chakra. That's what I was worried about." He still smiled, but his eyes informed Vell that the silver haired teen was being an asshole again. Gently. But still calling him an asshole.

Grimacing, Vell swung his legs to the bedside, rubbing his sleep-squashed hair. "Yeah..."

"Oh," Scythe said, perking, "and if anyone asks, the four of us are a traveling band of circus gypsies. <3"

"WHY." Vell had not the strength nor will to grace that statement with a proper question.

The wily man counted off on his fingers: "Rage-kun is the mute strongman, I'm the quirky knife-thrower, Awaji-kun is Hedgehog Child, and you're--"

"Say it and die," Vell snapped, but Awaji piped up in almost the same instant.

"Neko Boy! :D" Awaji scuttled around Vell's claws and giggled behind the tall Scythe, who grinned widely.

"Well - we couldn't let them find out what we really are, could we?"

Vell glared at him, unamused. "That story's ridiculous. No one will believe it."

"It's so ridiculous they'll have to believe it," Scythe corrected.

"..." The silver haired teen rubbed his temples to ward off his oncoming headache. "So where's my brother?"

Awaji stopped laughing and Scythe's smile almost dulled completely. "With Yuki-san," Scythe admitted quietly. "Kakashi-san came in earlier, but when they told him you were just sleeping it off, he went to see her. She's in pretty bad shape."

Vell stood up from the bed and stretched his arm above his head with nonchalance. "All right, then. Let's head back."

"Huh?" Awaji squeaked.

"His daughter's hurt. We'll be a nuisance to Onii-san if we hang around like ghosts. He's got enough on his plate." Vell walked out of the hospital room without a glance back at the two. "Let's find Rage and go."

"Vell-kun..." Scythe sighed with a shake of his wild hair. While Awaji scampered out the door, Scythe followed languidly, both intent on stopping Vell from leaving.