I'm late to breakfast the next morning, crawling out of bed well after sunrise and throwing on comfortable clothes. This is our day off, so I may as well be comfortable.

I can smell the food from upstairs and it makes my mouth water. As I shuffle downstairs, yawning and rubbing my eyes in the process, I think about what I should do with my day off.

I could train. I do miss the feeling of my wind nature running through my chakra. My lightning release could use some work. Maybe I'll try and teach something to one of my pupils.

When I approach the table and see Naruto and Sasuke bickering again, I sigh. Or maybe I'll just stay away from them for the day. Yeah, that sounds nice.

Kakashi waves, "Good morning."

I acknowledge him with a curt nod. I owe him that much for helping me out of my nightmares last night. Still, I feel strange sitting beside him after how close we were last night. I get a strange, tingly feeling in my stomach and I don't like it. It sets me off kilter because I don't understand why I am experiencing these feelings. Just a couple days ago, I'd snarl at the mention of his name. What has changed? Why the sudden pull towards him?

There goes my synchronicity, tumbling beyond my control. Will I catch it before it hits and does any damage?

I finish breakfast quickly and thank Tsunami, washing my own bowl and cutlery before heading outside.

The air is crisp and not too cold. It's is surprisingly clear, considering it's been so misty in the Land of Waves the last few days, but the clouds are plump and many.

I decide to go into the forest-heavy area of the land. It's not half as dense as the forests surrounding the Leaf Village but still reminds me of home.

I find a nice tree and scale it, focusing the chakra in my feet. There's a large branch and I perch on it, enjoying the smell of trees and cool breeze in my hair.

I look down at the forest floor below and my eyes catch on a basket filled with various plants and herbs. How did I not notice it before?

Someone must have left it there... or-

My latter suspicions are confirmed when a girl comes back into the leafy clearing with some herbs in her hand. She kneels at the basket and plucks the leaves off the plants, letting them fall one-by-one into the basket.

I observe her a little while longer, watching as she leaves and returns with various types of plants.

"You're a skilled shadow," she suddenly voices, standing up and looking directly at me from her place on the ground. I leap down from the tree branch, impressed with her ability to spot me, and approach her and the basket.

"You're pretty skilled yourself, spotting me like you did. Took you a while though," I remark, smirking a little. She smiles sweetly, returning my smirk.

"I spotted you many minutes ago, when you scaled that tree on your feet." I flinch slightly. She saw me before I even saw her. So she knew I was here this whole time and purposely acted as if she didn't know. "So you're a ninja," she mutters.

I nod, flicking the Konoha hitai-ate that I currently have wrapped around my arm with my fingernail.

"Are you from this land?" I ask, dipping my chin back at the village through the trees. But she shakes her head, which surprises me. I turn my head at her with a squint and she shrugs me off.

"I'm visiting with my superior. I'm gathering herbs to make medicine for him. This land has such an abundance!"

With this cheery remark, my suspicions of her fall and I relax a little. "Oh, I see."

She kneels back down to her basket and continues to pick apart the leaves and stems of her plants.

"I'm Ayame, from Konohagakure, by the way."

"Haku," she says simply, as she continues to pick away at the herbs, filling her basket.

"Where are you from, then?" I ask, kneeling down to meet her level. She looks Naruto's age, yet there's a certain look of maturity in her eyes.

"My home is where my master is," she answers with a closed eye smile.

I decide to fall back on my bottom, leaning on my hands behind me and stretching my legs out. The bird tweet in the trees above. It really is a beautiful day.

"And you're okay with that? With belonging to someone else?"

"Of course," she doesn't hesitate and her soft voice speaks volumes. She is completely confident in everything she's saying. "I protect him, he protects me."

I nod, watching her fragile fingers as the skillfully tear apart the plant, piece by piece. She's graceful in everything she does and her soft eyes watch the colorful plants as they fall into the basket peacefully.

Her next words take me by surprise, "Do you have someone to protect, Ayame-San?"

At first, I don't answer. I've never really thought about it before. Most of my life has been in training, getting stronger, or in the ANBU where I was only expected to protect myself and the mission.

"Well," I mutter, fumbling with my fingers as I try to come up with an answer. Why is this so difficult? Doesn't everyone have someone special to them that they want to protect? "I guess I protect the people in my village... my cousin, if it came to that. My friends... I'd protect them if they were in danger."

"But you don't have anyone who protects you while you protect them, no matter what," she says, her voice calm and smooth as it glides through the air.

I take a breath and clench my lips.

"You should find them. When you have someone to protect, that's when you become truly strong."

Her words send a wave of shock throughout my body, so much so that I actually flinch a little. She giggles as she goes back to work on the plant. "Don't worry, you'll find them. Maybe you already found them and you just don't know it yet!" she says cheerily as she gets up with her basket. "Well, maybe we'll meet again. It was nice meeting you!"

"Y-yeah, you too, Haku-Kun." I stutter, getting to my feet as well.

I go to walk away but as I do, she says one last thing, "I'm a boy, by the way."

With wide eyes, I continue to walk, not looking back.

A boy? What the heck?

What a strange interaction, I think. I try to forget about it because thinking to much about it makes my brain hurt.

I make it back to the edge of the village and spot a nice hill, overlooking the water. Maybe I'll lay back and watch the clouds roll by for a bit.

I find a comfortable spot on a small hill overlooking the water on one side, and the town on the other. It's quiet up here, away from the sounds of children playing and fishermen talking.

The peace and quiet is music to my ears. I'm not used to this much social interaction, to be honest. Back in the ANBU, it was a long day of missions where we didn't really talk much to each other except about mission related things, and then returning to my studio apartment to spend the evening alone. I took walks a lot, just to get out of the house. I guess I'm more of a people watcher than anything.

Observing without having to think about it. Floating along, much like the clouds in the sky.

Footsteps approach behind me and someone sits at my right.

"What do you see?" he asks. I'm getting quite good at recognizing Kakashi's voice.

"Nothing, I'm just watching. I don't really pay attention to the shapes and stuff," I say as I watch the clouds float by without meaning.

"That's weird," he mutters, "Watching without really watching."

I send him a weird face before returning my eyes to the sky. "It's not that weird. It's sort of like observing without assuming or analyzing. It's quite relaxing actually, you should try it some time."

He grunts and slides into a lying position.

"I see a dog... and that one, over there," he points to a particularly plump cluster of clouds, "it looks like a-"

"Cloud," I finish his sentence nonchalantly.

"No," he grumbles, "it looks like a tree."

"But it's not, it's just a cloud."

He stretches his arms before placing one of them over his eyes, sighing. "You have no imagination."

I huff, pushing myself up into a sitting position, "Says you, the killjoy."

He uncovers his eyes and peers at me with a confused gaze, "The what?"

I laugh a little, throwing my head back to stare into the sky again. "That's what we called you on Team Ro, the killjoy, because you sucked all the good energy from the room."

He sits up now, glaring at me accusingly, "Did not, I just wasn't interested in all the social stuff. It was ANBU, we were meant to distance ourselves from our feelings! ANBU are strict rule and formation followers-"

"God, it's just a joke, Kakashi," I mutter, "Chill out."

He sighs and leans back on his hands, staring into the sky again.

"I wasn't in the best place when I first entered the ANBU," he says quietly, eyes looking far beyond the sky. I wonder what he's thinking about.

After a moment of silence, I say, "I get it. If it makes you feel better, Tenzo always pounded me when I called you Cold-Kashi."

"You called me what?"

"Never mind," I chuckle, falling back into the grass and letting my eyes shut.

The silence stretches between us and for a few minutes, we just lay. It's relaxing at first, but then it becomes tense and feels a bit prolonged. I think he senses it too.

"Down for a walk on the dock?" he says after a while.

"Only if you promise not to rhyme again."

"I didn't even realize," he laughs, forming a closed eye smile and offering me a hand up. I hesitate for a moment before accepting it.

We can be friends, I decide. I'm gonna be stuck with him for a while anyways, so we may as well get along. It's better that way, for mission success.

We walk down the dock that lines the harbor, our steps slow and not really headed anywhere soon. The afternoon sun glares down, making beads of sweat roll down my arms and back.

In the distance, we catch sight of Naruto and Sasuke bickering about something. Naruto explodes at Sasuke who keeps his cool and turns his back to him, crossing his arms. Too cool for school is what it reminds me of. Sakura yells at Naruto, defending Sasuke's side, whatever it may be, and Naruto goes into a frenzy.

I sigh audibly and Kakashi hmphs in agreement.

"Quite the team," I say sarcastically, because there isn't much teamwork happening at all.

Kakashi slides his hands in his pockets and continues to observe our team from afar.

"They remind me of my old team," he says with nostalgia curling through his words.

"Oh yeah?"

"Well, except that Rin was a bit softer tempered than Sakura is," he says with a sweatdrop, scratching the back of his head.

"And you were the cool-tempered Sasuke of the team?" I ask, already knowing the answer. I remember the early days of ANBU when he was a lot more cocky and non-caring—the days before he was even promoted to captain. There were days he would kill all of our opponents with one jutsu, not leaving a single one alive for interrogation. When the older ANBU would scold him, he'd give them a glare. One that would shut anyone up.

He turns to me but his single visible eye is off in a different world as he speaks.

"I wasn't always like that. Everything changed after my father died..."

I ask quietly, to be respectful, but am genuinely curious about the answer. "How did he die?"

There's silence between us for a few moments, except for the sound of our sandals hitting the dock. "He sacrificed a mission to save his comrades and was ridiculed, even by those he saved," he mutters, sadness emanating in his voice. "Then he killed himself."

I pause in my steps, looking up at him.That's terrible... I almost feel bad for making fun of him all these years.

"I'm sorry to hear that," I whisper, "What about your mother?"

"She died in childbirth, my father never talked about her."

"So you don't know who she was?"

"Nope," he answers, and he doesn't seem hurt by it. I guess the fact that he never knew her helps with the emotional aspect of losing her. But, I never knew my mother, and it hurts me more than anything.

I guess the difference is that my mother didn't want me. She made a choice, and she chose abandonment.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't be asking you this. It's not my place."

He gives me a closed eye smile, shaking it off, "Don't worry about it. It was a long time ago."

"Is the mourning of your father why Lord Fourth had you join ANBU?"

He tilts his head then shakes it, "No, there were a few things that led up to it. Mainly, after my teammates Obito and Rin died, my sensei assigned me because he thought it might help distract me."

I frown, feeling terrible about how much I used to bad-talk him. Turns out there was so much more to his story and identity than just the cold-hearted Captain I assumed him to be.

"I'm sorry," I find myself muttering.

"Hey, I said don't worry about it," he says again with a gentle smile. "What about your team?"

I furrow my brows, running a hand through my hair and getting it caught in a tangle. I yank and tug until I free my hand. "I never payed much attention to my teammates or sensei... my only goal was focusing on my own strength," I say shamefully. I kick a rock off the dock and it lands in the water with a plunk, making ripples and a small splash. "I guess I was pretty self-centered back then."

Kakashi smirks, "And you aren't now?"

"Hey!" I shout with a subtle laugh, shoving his shoulder with a decent amount of force.

He shoves me back and it actually makes me stumble backwards. I try to catch my balance all while yelping as I put my foot down behind me but realize there's no deck. I step on air and tumble backwards into the cold water. I finally surface, spitting the water from my mouth.

"That was mean!" I shout, splashing his legs with some of the cold lake water.

"You asked for it," he chants with great confidence and a chuckle.

I smirk, narrowing my eyes. "Is that so?" I take a deep breath and dunk my head under the water, forming the hand signs for a shadow clone. It appears and swims underneath the water, climbing onto the dock from the other side. Kakashi has no idea and watches me resurface, completely ignorant to the shadow clone standing behind him.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" he mutters. He turns, noticing my shadow clone, but it's too late. "H-hey!"

The clone pushes him roughly off the dock before disappearing in a cloud of smoke. He hits the water with a big splash and resurfaces, shaking out his mop of silver, wet hair.

"My hair!" he grunts, patting it all over, trying to get it under control.

"Of course you worry about your hair. Pfft," I puff, splashing him again while I tread in the shallow water.

"Hey, it takes a lot of product to make it look this good!" he pouts, putting half of his masked face in the water and blowing bubbles through the fabric. His eyes look into mine with a pouty glimmer.

"Mmm, I'll bet you use lots of girly, flowery scented shampoo, Kaka-baka," I taunt, turning my nose up at him in a joking manner. He frowns and goes under the water. I try to search for him but the water is dark and foggy and he's nowhere to be seen. I whip my head around, searching for bubbles breaking the surface.

The water right in front of me bubbles and he pops up, spitting a stream of lake water from his mouth in my face.

"Ew, ew ew ew, that's so gross!" I sputter, splashing my face with more dirty lake water. I guess it's better than mouth water.

He laughs and I'm suddenly aware of his bare face. The mask is hanging loosely at his neck and he's smiling wide, perfect white teeth sparking and features as symmetrical and sharp as they come. The only thing marking his face is a small freckle or birth mark below his left, bottom lip and the scar that strikes through his left eye stretching just past his nose.

"What a noble reason to remove your mask," I say, "to spit lake water in my face."

Still smiling sweetly, he reaches up and pulls a green string of seaweed from my hair, tossing it into the water behind. His hand lingers for a moment and his eyes trail the strand of brown hair as he runs his fingers through it.

I feel a sudden jolt of discomfort and grab his wrist with my hand. He stares at me with his one open eye and his lips hang open slightly in confusion.

"I can't," I tell him, pushing his hand away. He searches my face for a few seconds, a slight frown finding its way upon his perfect lips.

After a pause, he asks, "Why not?" I can hear the disappointment in his voice and it becomes more evident on his face too.

"I... I made a promise to myself long ago that I wouldn't fall in love again," the words fall guiltily off my tongue and I find myself avoiding his eye. I'm frowning now too. He pulls his mask back up and takes a step back from me, the water rippling around us.

"Fall in love again?" he questions.

I stand up in the shallow water and it comes just to my waist. With my back to him, I conjure up the words that I know will hurt us both, "I'm sorry, Kakashi. I can't."

I'm out of the water and leaving a trail from my soaking wet clothes as I walk swiftly to the house, arms crossed in front of me. I don't look back but I know he stays in the lake, unmoving for a while.

I strip down, tossing my wet clothing in the sink before stepping into the hot shower. It burns my skin compared to the cold lake water, but I still shiver.

Memories of my past have been uprooted. Ones I tried for so long to suppress through endless training and a mind focused completely on missions.

He flashes into my memory in bits and pieces, never really forming a full picture. Just shattered pieces of my past.

His hair, black as a Raven. Just like his name.

His voice, a low rumble with cracks of a young boy still coming through when he least expected it.

Skin, soft and warm; but fingertips always cold.

His eyes, captivatingly bright and unique. The color of autumn, with gold speckles like a firework.

I will him out of my mind and try to focus on the feeling of hot water on my goosebump-covered skin.

A pitiful feeling forms in my stomach and I make the water hotter, trying to burn the thoughts away through gritted teeth.