A Few Needed Adjustments

Husk of the Cocoon

Natsume: Be Kyubi

Kyubi had no idea why that narration popped into his head. Maybe it was from the conversation from a few hours ago or maybe he was just insane. Probably the latter.

He was teleported from the Amano (That stung him a little) household to his little home and he still felt like shit. He tried to take a catnap to bring in more energy and to also feel less like shit, but of course, it failed. It was just his usual routine of lay in bed, stare at the ceiling, toss and turn until he slid to the floor and spend half an hour wondering how much his life was worth until he slipped into a dreamless sleep.

Tonight was not much different, actions-wise. But thought-wise, there were things new and repressed, rising from the pool cover he stapled to the ground long ago.

Being in their house, HER house, brought up many emotions. Ones that refused to be suffocated under the pillow of denial.

He still loved her. No matter how many times he told himself he wasn't, no matter how many other women (or men) he saw, none of them could compare to Fumika.

When she told him that she was married, he felt proud for repressing that feeling of being crushed like an egg.

Secretly, Kyubi wanted more than the banging. His heart felt more than the rush of endorphines from the climax; he felt genuine attraction.

That's why when Fumi told him she wanted to end their relations out of the blue, he had to bite down on his tongue and text back that he understood. And he did. Anyone who cheated on a spouse nine out of ten times felt guilty about their actions.

It should have just ended there, two strangers, knowing little about each other, walking away and never seeing each other again. It should have, even with his long lasting attraction to her, should have ended that way.

But along came Natsume, his daughter apparently. She makes him remember and revive those emotions, ones he had not felt for years.

His heart said to take a second chance because everyone had one, but his mind knew the faults. What would he do? Whisk her off her feet like some sort of fairy tale princess and take her away to their happily ever after? She was a married women with a husband who loved her as much as she loved him. Kyubi was just a burnt out husk of a fox, never to see the light of a family or others that cared for him.

He was alone in this world.

His thoughts were interrupted as a pillow fell on top of his face. The soft feathers made him sneeze, but he made no attempt to pull it off. None of his muscles wanted to move and he was fine with that. Kyubi just wanted to rot away.

No.

I'm not going to die, a small part of his mind thought, not without doing something first.

He was surprised that in his grey matter, there still was a bit of fighting chance left.

You are not alone and hopeless, it continued, you still have someone in your life who isn't passive aggressive.

"And who would that be?" he thought out loud.

Natsume. She still cares for you. Didn't you see it in her eyes, that twinkle?

Kyubi did in fact see that. There was something there, almost if she was trying to say, nonverbally, that she wanted him...in her life.

Kyubi never thought or had people wanting him in their lives, and yet here he was, astounded that this innocent girl wanted a bum like him to be with her.

The tears stinging his eyes were absorbed into the pillow.

It was one that night, before he fell asleep, Kyubi made a conviction to himself that he would at least be good, no, GREAT, role model to Natsume. A/N: Really short chapter, but I wanted to show why Kyubi does a lot of things later in the story.