Blossomed The Butterfly From The Cocoon |:| |:| Shino |:| |:| One-Shot

"Bye, Ino-chan!"


"Bye, Hotaru-chan!"


You and Ino grinned with flushed faces, carefree and giddy from the sake you'd both drank. You and your best friend didn't go out to drink that often, due to the fact you were underage, but occasionall, who could resist?


"Home I go, home I go," you hummed, walking down the street fairly stable. Lights flickered off, signaling the closing of the shops as you made your way home. A small smile crept on to your face, content with yourself--you'd deserved a good drink after our longs days work at the local dojo, tutoring students in taijutsu...


A moth flew by your face, making you duck down and shriek. Bugs! Bugs to you were the spawns of Satan Himself, mostlikely there only to bother you!


Someone cleared their throat right above you. At the moment you really didn't care about them.


"Ahem." A long pause. "Ahem!"


"Excuse me, but I'm trying not to have a heart attack from the moth that almost touched me!" You glanced up timidly to find the source of all your problems: Aburame Shino.


Your nose crinckled up when you eyed him suspiciously. Everytime you looked at the buggy-boy you felt something hit you in the chest, an odd feeling--you didn't know if it was disgust or uncomfortableness.


"Konichiwa. Now, what are you doing out so late, alone, Inuzuka-san?"


"What are you doing out so late, Aburame-san?" you repeated bitterly. "I am returning home from... a party, baka."


His face remained calm but his tone was accusing. "You're drunk."


"No!"


"Yes."


You glared him up and down and jumped up, stomping past him, wobbly.


'Better place a female on her, so we can find her when she's lying dead in a gutter,' Shino thought and signaled for a female bug to fly and plant herself in your hair. Luckily, you didn't notice.
---->
"Hotaru-chan! Where is she?!" Kiba shouted, puching throught the door.


"Calm down, Kiba, your sister is fine." tsunade put down her clipboard and smiled. "If it wasn't for Shino over there, we never would have found her!" She gestured to Shino, leaning against the wall farthest from the bed, then sighed. "But there is one, big problem..."


"What?! What's wrong?1" Kiba cried in a paniced voice.


"I've preformed some tests with her, like speech, memory and others... she..." Tsunade stopped.


"She has amnesia," shino finished. Tears swelled up in Kiba's eyes, threatening to spill out.


"...And...?"


"I've had several basic conversations with her, but all she wants to talk about ti Aburame Shino."


Shino felt his eyebrows go up in suprise, when he forced the down, fast. "So?"


"Shino, I think it would be best if she stayed with you until she recovers all of her memory... I've already talked with kiba's mother and older sister, and they are with the idea. Only Kiba has to agree. But I recommend he does, or she could suffer permenant mental scarring," Tsunade explained hesitantly. Again, his eyebrows shot up.


No. Not her. Not the girl he knew who hated him even more than he disliked her. Everytime he even heard your name a know of uneasiness got tighter in his chest. No!


Kiba growled and trudged over to Shino angrily. "Shino,"? he started, "I'm only letting you do this for 3 reasons: One, you were the one who found her after being gone for 3 days; two, you're on my team; and three, Tsunade-sama's not really giving me a choice." He sighed and stepped away to leave. "Just be careful with my little sister."


"Sister? Me?1 I don't know what he's talking about! His name's Kiba-san, correct?" you said, sitting up in your bed.


"Inuzuka-san!" both Shino and Tsunade said, suprised.


"Gokigenyou. But that kiba-san must be confused about my realationship with him, because the only shinobi in my life is Shino-chan!" you stated and held out your arms for a hug. Tsunade nodded her chin towards you, glarring at Shino. He reluctantly walked over and.. semi-hugged you!

"Welocome to your new life, until she recovers!" the Hokage laughed and left you alone with Shino.
---->
"Uzumaki Naruto-san, huh? Nope, not familiar at all!" you said cheerfully and crossed your arms. Shino sighed deeply and thanked Naruto for being so kind to you.

"Shino-chan, there seems to be something wrong... what?" you asked, concern laced into your words.

"It's quite strefful."

"Nani?"

"The other day you fell down a hill and hit your head on a large stone, hard. You have amnesia, and now Tsunade's told me to reintroduce you to everyone, in hopes that you'd remember. Naruto-san was the last one..." He slowed down, preparing for your shock. Your pace remained the same.

"Wow. That's too bad! But, at least I have you to help me!" you replied, edging closer. Shino's jaw tightened when he noticed your actions.

'Is this really Inuzuka Hotaru?!'

You both continued to walk to shino's house, but stopped near the forest. "Stay here," he demanded.

I a minute he was deep in the forest, looking for the bug catcher he'd set up. He needed some more hunderd Destructon Bugs for upcoming missions, so--

"Awesome!" I love bugs!" you cried excitedly, jumping down from a tree. Shino almost gasped, he was so startled. Almost.

"No, you hate bugs," he muttered into his collar. You'd leaned down to look at the catcher.

"I wish I belonged to your clan... wow, insects are amazing creatures. Can you teach me more about them?!" you pleaded. Your new caretaker froze, shocked to a point where breathing was hard to keep up.

"Why not?" he managed to ask no one, leading you into the forest.

~<>~<>~<>~<>~

For the next month, you lived with Shino, he adjusting more to you than vise versa. He because quite comfortable around you and could talk freely... of course, the first night you insisted that you share a bed with him he almost stormed out of his own large house. Almost. He'd just slept on a futon, but that's beside the point: he and you were inseperable. One of the reasons Shino had become so comfy living with you was because of everything you now were--cool, calm, interested in what he had to say, and not scared of insects. He noticed how you now depended on him... not in a clingy way, but like he was a part of you. When you two were separated, you were lost and confused. He liked, if not cherished, the connection you both had. Eventually, he'd grown to see you as more than an annoyance... much more.
---->
"Shino-chan,' you said sleepily. He nodded and scooted over in his king-sized bed (he insisted you both slept as far apart from each other, but you hadn't the faintest idea why!) "would you ever consider marrying me?"

Shino suddenly felt his dinner coming up. did you just ask him about... marriage?

"I mean, people who love each other usually get married, right?" you said, playing with your hair, "and we love each other."

He flipped over to face you in bed. You wondered what he was thinking as you hopelessly tried to see through his dark lenses. He flipped back over.

'Why admit it now? soon she's going to going to remember everything she should be... or will she? Will she stop listening to me and likin bugs and making my heart... pain, becuase I know I can't have her? I have to decide now!' he thought furiously.

"Right?" you asked hopfully.

Pause. "No. I don't love you, Hotaru-san."

~<>~<>~<>~<>~

For the next several hours Aburame Shino listened to you weep. He never knew a 17 year old could shed so many tears.
---->
Shino's eyes fluttered open suddenly, awakened by sunlight. Something didn't feel right. He flipped over. You were gone.

As soon as time would let him, he was out of the house and looking throught Konoha for you. Twenty minutes later, as panic was about to boil of inside of him, you were found. You were chattig and laughing with Yamanaka Ino, unusally. Whenever Shino was with you, you'd ignored her.

Shino sent a bug down the road to you and Ino to eavesdrop. when it flew between your faces, Ino reeled back. You barely flinched and continued talking.

The bug flew back to his owner and Shino listened to him. What? You were talking about Naruto at the Kareoke Bar a few nights ago, when they'd gone drinking? But hat was before you gotten... amnesia!

Before Shino knew it you were headed in his direction, ready to pick on him. But when you met his gaze, no ping of hate slammed you in the chest--it was more of a calming, mellow feeling. Memories of the night before and emotions came rushing back. You stopped infront of him, biting your lip.

"So... I guess I'm gonna' have to get used to bugs if I'm going to fall for you," you admitted. "Won't be too hard, after all the time we've spent together. Thanks for taking care of me... Ino explained everything but I better get back to my house before--"

Shino almost stopped himself from leaning down and kissing you. Almost.
Special suprise in the results ---->
Here is an amazing picture of Hotaru that XxOurSilentDuetxX drew!! Don't you love it?!