First Day Home [Open]

Nyx was home which meant no more ANBU escort; at least not one that she could see. It wouldn't surprise her if they were still there, just giving her her space. Her mother had been a bit on edge since she had returned home: something she could tell due to the increase of the explosives smell around her - despite how cheery her mother had acted upon seeing her and the amount of hugs she had got.

As it was she was seated in the park, on a bench, with a ice cream cone piled high in her hand. Legs which were a bit too short to reach the ground, swung back and forth as she licked at the delicious cold treat in her hand. Her tail swayed in time to her legs swaying, and her wolf-like ears twitched at the slightest noise.

For the moment a bird on a nearby branch which was chirping away had caught her attention. The bird hopped its way closer to her, still chirping and Nyx watched carefully. "Hello, little birdie. I would share my ice cream with you but I'm sure that that would make you quite sick.", Nyx would coo softly at the bird who would respond to her with more chirping.

Nyx would simply giggle before licking some more at her ice cream to keep it from dripping all over her hand and the rest of her.

Okami yawned as he walked down the street. It was a beautiful day, so he decided to go and spoil himself with some ice cream. It had been too long, and it was with great pleasure that he got himself a shake. He didn't particularly care for ice cream's texture, but when they were shaken and mixed with milk then the silkiness was just right. Peanut butter and chocolate were mixed with vanilla in this one, and it tasted divine. He wore his normal attire, consisting of a black high-collared Uchiha short sleeved shirt, long white pants with grey leg wraps and a white rope belt. He carried his katana and gear pouch with him out of habit, and his headband was around his neck loosely. Walking towards the local park while slurping his milkshake, he saw a young girl nearby with ice cream of her own. Somehow, she looked familiar, although he couldn't quite place it.

She was strange, with a pair of wolf ears and a tail that shone the same color as her hair, a strawberry blonde that seemed to be unnatural in shade. She appeared to be around eight or nine, and was short enough that her legs didn't touch the ground while she was on the bench. Despite the weather, she wore a bright red scarf. Deciding that she was probably an Academy student that he had seen the last time he went there for a lecture, he walked over to talk to the young girl.

"Hey there!" Okami would say with absolutely no amount of danger in his deep baritone. "I think I know you from somewhere, sorry. Do you go to the Academy?"

WC: 280

Her legs kept swinging and her tail kept switching in time with the swings as she shifted her attention to the male who had came up to her. She licked at her ice cream once more, saving herself from sticky fingers as the large mass kept melting and attempting to drip down the cone. Her ears twitched as the man mentioned the Academy and she shook her head no in response.

"I don't go to the Academy; I get privately tutored.", she would respond quickly before going back to licking at the delicious treat.

A glance up to the tree branch the bird had been positioned on showed her that it was gone; having flown away to a much higher branch so to continue to sing its sweet song. So, with the bird out of eye sight she shifted her attention onto the male once more. "Perhaps you know me from somewhere else?", she asked curiously. It was like a game to her really: it wasn't exactly a secret she was the Harukage's child, but it wasn't flaunted either. So to her this was like a fun little guessing game; only it was him doing the guessing and her waiting to find out if he could figure it out or not.

Back to licking her ice cream she went while she waited for him to try again - if he did.

Hmm, Okami wondered. Who could she be, if not from the Academy. Privately tutored meant the daughter of someone important, so it could be one of the noble clans. However, the tail and ears rang a bell somewhere in his head. Hunnn, what to say, what to say...A light sang bright in the back of his head at that moment, a sweet reminder of days long past. When he was a Jounin, he had heard rumors about the Kage having a daughter named Nyx, but it couldn't be her, could it? Okami decided to give it a shot.

"Could you be...the Harukage's daughter, Nyx-sama?" Of course, that had to be it. The Inuzuka were known for being close to the wolves they lived their whole lives with, and some even adopted features of them. Perhaps she was one of those rare cases. But still, to meet her out here in the open was a random chance of one in a million. It just wasn't possible. Was it?

WC: 169

Nyx burst out giggling, a very happy sound, as the male was able to guess who she was correctly. She nodded her head yes to confirm things while attempting to catch another drip of melting ice cream with her tongue. Upon saving herself once more from a sticky mess she would shift her attention onto the male again.

"Yup yup! That's me! But, who are you?", she would ask curiously, her head tilting off to the left as a look of curiosity fell upon her face. She hadn't seen the individual around before even though she recognized by his smell that he was indeed a Morigakure nin. Then again, she spent the majority of her time either off with her father, with her cousin, or with her mother in her office - so she didn't often get to meet new people.

More licking of her ice cream had it level with the cone; no more risk of random drips making her a very sticky mess: though it also meant her treat was coming to an end.

Okami laughed as the little girl confirmed what he figured out. He laughed even further as she began to vigorously lick at her ice cream to prevent a soupy, sticky mess. Reaching into his pocket, he would pull out a napkin and hand it to Nyx, just in case. As to who he was, he giggled a bit, a throaty, deep rumble that would seem comfortable and yet capable.

"Well, Nyx-sama, my name is Okami. I'm a Genin right now, and I'm an Uchiha like your father. It's so nice to meet you!" Okami would say, a large, goofy grin on his face. He had gotten used to the idea of being a Genin again, and honestly it didn't bother him as much as it would normally. Temaki was a fair Kage, and gave him this out knowing he would never abandon his Village willingly. The only other option was exile, and that would break him physically and emotionally. He had a feeling that if he asked, he could probably have his ranking back and still go into exile, but he didn't want to. He wouldn't exchange this opportunity for the world.

WC: 192

The male introduced himself as Okami which made her giggle a bit considering her Inuzuka heritage and the fact that her mother went around with two wolves the size of horses. "Okami... means wolf. I like your name. Wolves are my favorite animal." Nyx would take the napkin with another smile, keeping it on her hand for the moment while she focused back on her ice cream cone. "Thank you, Mister Okami."

The ice cream was below the cone at this point, meaning that Nyx had to eat away at the cone to get to the ice cream inside which she did carefully in her attempt to not make a mess all over herself. "What's your favorite animal, Mister Okami?"

Her gaze would focus back onto Okami as she once again began to lick at the ice cream she had now freed. It would take only a few licks before she would begin biting and eating at the cone once more to free even more: soon, very soon, her nice cold treat would be gone. Alread she was thinking about getting another one - but she knew it would likely ruin her appetite for supper.

Okami pondered for a moment as she nibbled at her ice cream. What had brought Nyx all the way out here without an escort? The ice cream itself was a likely culprit, but all thought was swamped when she asked what his favorite animal was. The very thought made him chuckle a bit more. He was named for it, after all.

"My favorite animal is the wolf, actually. I know it sounds cheesy, since my name means 'wolf', but that's life for you. A silly mess that you just can't help but love!" Okami laughed, pulling a couple of ryo out from his pocket when he saw her begin to eat the last of her ice cream. Drinking his shake a bit more, he was off in a flash, back before she could even react. Handing her a second ice cream of the same flavor, he gave her a huge smile as he did. It would be double the amount of scoops as the first, so as to last longer this time, and was guaranteed to spoil her supper. Somehow, though, Okami had the feeling that neither Nyx or her family would mind. His wasn't even close to done, as he had gotten half a gallon of milkshake. It might seem a little ridiculous, but he would work it off easily. Shinobi tended to do that.

WC: 227

Okami said that his favorite animal was the wolf, just like hers. She couldn't help but grin and giggle once more: most people were scared of wolves, but Nyx wasn't since she had spent so much time around them growing up, and apparently Okami liked them too. "Do you have a wolf companion?", the child asked curiously. She knew she would be considered old enough and mature enough to take care of her own wolf, or ninken, soon enough, but Okami was much older than her meaning it likely he might have one already if he did in fact have one.

Nyx ate the rest of her ice cream cone and then used the napkin to clean off her hands. Upon looking up she found Okami standing there with another. Already her stomach was beginning to feel full. The ice cream cone was tempting but her mother's voice was nagging a bit in the back of her mind: never take candy, or food in general, from strangers. It had been a rule drilled into her since she was very young, and yet here was the situation in front of her for the first time.

She knew his name, she knew he liked wolves just like her, and yet he was still a complete stranger. "Hm. No offense Mister Okami but I'm not supposed to take things from strangers, especially food. My momma said so. I think she'd be upset if I didn't listen to her." She truly hoped she didn't offend him, but rules were rules, and she tried to be as obedient as a child as she could. "Besides, I'm pretty sure that would ruin my dinner and my moms making my favorite tonight: steak and potato's."

Okami nodded in understanding, about to answer her when a bird came crashing down trough the trees to land unceremoniously by him. Handing off the ice cream to a random passerby, who would look at him strangely before noticing his headband and shrugging, licking at the cone. Picking up the letter attached to the clumsy bird, he would smile as he read the contents.

"I apologize, Nyx-sama. I have to cut this meeting short. My team is moving into Sabakugakure, and I am invited to join them. I truly hope you enjoy your dinner, and that we see each other again sometime!" Okami said with his trademark wolfish grin. It was true, he hoped he could see the young girl again sometime. Perhaps when he did, she'd be a Genin! Smiling at this thought, he wold excuse himself and make his way back towards his home, all the while drinking his milkshake.