Chapter 4: IV
Summary:
The boys are on the way to London.
Notes:
I still have a chapter prewritten, that I will upload next week. Then however I don't know if I'll have a lot of time writing the beginning of March. I have a few exams coming up... normally that gives me doubly motivation to write - as writing is my favourite procrastination method - but don't count on it.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Shaggy let them at a leisurely pace. He turned around to make sure, Kakashi was keeping up every now and then, though the boy had no trouble whatsoever. Kakashi was even a little warmed by the consideration, though he didn't need it. The dog stayed on pathways and streets through the fields, never quite entering the small patches of forest to the west. That too, Kakashi assumed, he did out of consideration.
A kind dog… Maybe overly so.
They followed a small road to an even smaller place called Metton. Kakashi deciphered the town sign, just as they entered the small amalgamation of houses. This one, Kakashi thought, reminded him much more of the villages he was used to. The architecture was still different of course, most buildings made of stone and brick. This village – just like Cromer – had a church throning above the rest, a solid fortress-like structure made of grey stone. But the size of the village was comparable to what he was used to. The houses stood spread far apart, belonging to small farms, each farm a small number of buildings grouped together, with a big front yard, and fields stretching out long behind it.
Charming, Kakashi thought, as he watched an elderly couple sit outside on their front porch, enjoying the morning sun.
A sudden loud noise made him jump. One of the big metallic machines was rolling up behind him. Kakashi could hear it come closer from far away, but he hadn't been prepared for the loud horn that suddenly blared out. The big, bright green machine slowly rolled past them, the driver eying Kakashi and Shaggy wearily. He hadn't even passed yet when he slowed down and came to a complete stop next to him. "You should take your dog on a leash," the man in the front of the vehicle called out to him. "It's dangerous when a car comes by and he gets frantic."
Kakashi frowned at the man, trying to understand the language. "Leash?" he asked looking down at Shaggy. He'd heard the word a few times now regarding Shaggy. There was something in Shaggy's stance, that bothered Kakashi every time he heard it. The dog was bristling, ducking, almost inching away at the word. Kakashi was confused by the reaction. He had understood it to mean some sort of rope to tie to the dog, so he would not run away. Kakashi himself saw little need for it. The dog seemed well-behaved enough, and well-adjusted to the world around him – in fact he seemed better adjusted than Kakashi himself. Never mind that Kakashi trusted his own reflexes enough, that he could catch the dog in time, before he could do something overly stupid like jump in front of this 'car'. "I don't… think…," but he was running out of words. "Thanks, but I don't think it's necessary." He switched to Japanese instead.
The man looked at him curiously. "Tourist?" he asked. Kakashi already knew that word. He nodded. When the man looked up and down the street, Kakashi knew what he was looking for. This land didn't seem used to teenagers traveling alone. They'd have a laugh if they knew the kinds of things he'd already done and survived in his life. Well that, or they would declare him mad.
"Alone?" the man asked curiously and a little worried. When Kakashi nodded again, the man frowned. "You should be careful," he said.
Careful… Kakashi tried to place the word. He was sure he had heard it before. "I'm sorry, I don't know… careful," he said.
The man made a face. "Just get back to your parents," he suggested, turning back towards the street, starting his machine again. The motor almost drowned out the next words. "They say there's a killer on the loose." He drove on before Kakashi could try to decipher that sentence.
He knew 'kill'. It had been in the article he had read to Shaggy just yesterday. So, he could guess what a killer was.
He saw the man and his machine turn left into one of the big yards in the village. Unsure what he should make of his last warning, he waved for Shaggy to continue their way. Kakashi truly did not fear a killer. He was one himself. As peaceful as this land seemed, Kakashi thought it was unlikely that there was anybody with a kill count quite as high as himself.
It was nothing he was proud of. Apparently, he had a talent for it. He was rather effective, and he would do everything for his village. But he was not proud of his murders.
He was proud to call himself Minato-sensei's students. Obito's friend who he had in the end entrusted his own Sharingan-eye. The man Rin thought, she could love. His father's son… All things that were gifted to him. There was nothing of his own achievement to be proud of.
And look what you did with what you had. All dead in the ground.
He shook his head, realizing, Shaggy hadn't moved yet. Kakashi had already taken the first few steps, but Shaggy was the guide for this journey. Impatiently, Kakashi looked back at him. "What is?" he asked.
But as if he just needed that push, Shaggy started moving again, measuredly putting one paw in front of the other, as if there was a danger that one wrong step might open the ground to swallow him whole. Curiously, Kakashi watched until Shaggy was past him again.
They passed a few more small villages that day. Kakashi realized that something had changed in Shaggy. He was more careful. He was glancing around himself. He kept closer to Kakashi. Whenever they entered a new village, he would visibly slow down, until he stepped into the inhabited area. It was curious. Part of Kakashi wondered if the dog had understood the warning about the killer and was worried. It was an amusing thought.
"Hey Shaggy," Kakashi called out jokingly just as they left a place called Erping…something.
The dog perked up, trudged over to him, and nudged his hand with his wet snout. His tail wagged a little, showing more life than he had ever since they left Metton.
"Don't worry," he said, his single eye curving into a smile, as he knelt and ruffled the wild fur. "No worries about killer." He bit down hard on his lip. How often had he said that? Every day since Obito's death, he spoke it like a mantra into the mirror. What good had it ever done him? He had failed and failed and failed. And yet, he had meant it every time. And yet… What else was there? He had failed his friends, his comrades, his teacher. But surely a dog… A mutt with no enemies? He could do that. "I don't let friends die." He had tried hard for that sentence, stringing the words together, until it sounded right.
For some reason, the dog's tail-wagging stopped immediately. His ears stood up as he stared at Kakashi with wide intelligent eyes. Then he gave a single approving bark before he dragged a hot wet tongue over Kakashi's palm. The boy grimaced a little, wiping his hand in the dog's fur.
He didn't know if the dog had understood his words, or if his words had even made sense in English. In any case, Shaggy's behavior didn't get better all the way to the next bigger settlement. It was a place called Aylsham and it was the first place that seemed in size comparable to Cromer. At least there were shops again, and he recognized the more densely built rows of houses. If nothing else this little trip was proof enough, that this land seemed much more densely populated than he was used to. This was now the second settlement almost comparable to Konoha in size, and they were just 3 hours apart – 3 hours at a casual civilian stroll.
Once more, Shaggy seemed to almost hesitate, before he led Kakashi straight into the center of Aylsham. If he was so afraid of people, Kakashi thought a little bothered by this behavior, why lead Kakashi this way anyway? Kakashi didn't need to see these places. However, now that he was here…
Walking past the many shops, he thought having a little money wouldn't be half bad. Whatever money he had with him was worthless after all.
A small shop caught his sight. He couldn't quite decipher the script on the sign. The font was odd, much heavier, and a little fancier than he was used to. It had the distinct characteristics of traditional quill writing. But it made it so much more difficult to read the foreign symbols. The big window, however, showed a wild arsenal of what Kakashi assumed were different historical artifacts, among which were several weapons – some of which seemed familiar.
He made a beeline for the shop. Shaggy seemed a bit surprised by this turn, but he followed regardless before he stopped short in front of the door. More than usual, now that he had to wait outside, he ducked low making himself small, as if trying to hide. Was he afraid without Kakashi close by? Still, he stayed outside without even a complaining whine.
"What can I do for you?" a young man asked as he entered. There was only one other customer. "What strikes your fancy, lad?"
"I want…," Kakashi said frustrated at the difficulties he still had with the language. "I need money."
The man laughed a little baffled. "Sorry, kid, I'm not a bank. That's just down the road."
"No." His hand moved back to his pouch pulling out a kunai. He carefully tried to not hold it in a threatening way. The young man still jumped as the knife blinked in the light of the shop. Kakashi quickly put it on the register. "You get kunai. I get money."
The man stared at him. "You want to sell?" He looked down at the knife. "Jesus, kid, where did you get that?" His hand made a quick grab for the knife, Kakashi let him. "Is that… Oh, wow, it's bloody sharp." He stupidly bumped his thumb against the weapon drawing a tiny bit of blood. Could he not tell that it was sharp by simply looking at it? Kakashi was a bit annoyed at that carelessness. "Where did you get that?" He asked again.
"Yes, sell," Kakashi said instead of answering. "How much?"
But the man wasn't ready to give an answer quite yet. "It looks real," he said.
Kakashi scoffed, of course, it was real. Didn't these people ever see real weapons that they'd react so overly dramatic over a simple kunai. Kakashi had dozens of these.
"It's a Japanese throwing knife," the man uselessly supplied, ignoring all the other ways a Kunai might be used. It was a nifty little all-around tool, much more than just a throwing weapon. But he didn't intend to educate this man on the ways of the shinobi. He just wanted some money, so he gave a curt nod.
"How old are you?" the man asked. "How did you even get this?" The same question again.
Kakashi shook his head. "Excuse me."
"Ah, not much English, hm. You're Japanese?"
Kakashi nodded, just to make this easier and quicker.
"Alright. I think I can give you 90 £ for it." The man sighed. "I'll be honest. Doesn't feel right to pull a boy over the barrel. You'd get more for it in London… or bloody hell even Norwich. But I can give you 90 £."
Kakashi understood only half of that. Though he might keep in mind, that he could try selling another kunai in this London or Norwich if he ever got there. "Okay, 90 £," he said. If he remembered correctly from his time in Cromer that was not a lot, but nothing to scoff at either. And he really needed some money. The first city he'd see, he'd planned to buy new clothes, to better fit in. But that hadn't worked out so well, once he'd learned that his money was useless here.
"Alright." The man handed him a few banknotes.
He went straight from the weapons and history stuff shop to the next place where they sold clothes. Not willing to let Shaggy suffer outside alone for long again, he quickly picked a rather boring dark green shirt with a small symbol of a wave or – or maybe an upside-down U-letter? – over the heart. He paid 20 £ for that and then after short consideration entered a third shop. A pet shop.
After all, he had decided that the guy over in Metton had been right. Not regarding the leash, but he should at least put some sort of collar on the dog. This way, he just looked like a stray, and back in Cromer, he'd been referred to as such a few times, and people had made to shoo him away until they'd realized he was with Kakashi. Something to show, he belonged, wouldn't be bad, Kakashi thought.
He had no need to look for the cheapest or most beautiful one that struck his fancy. Instead, he took the next best, which looked wide enough for Shaggy, even after he'd hopefully gain a few pounds. However, when he showed the collar to Shaggy outside the shop, the dog growled, crouched, whined. His eyes widened to huge circles and he was shaking like a leaf, the way Kakashi had last seen it when he first found the dog. As Kakashi made to grab for him, the dog actually snapped at him. Kakashi pulled his hand back in time, but he was still surprised by the reaction.
"It tried to bite!" Somebody cried next to Kakashi. "That poor boy. The dog is too big for him."
Then Shaggy jumped backward, hunched in, and growled threateningly. Sighing, Kakashi put the collar back into his pouch. "Alright," Kakashi grumbled, showing his now empty hands. "We don't do now." But instead of calming down, Shaggy made a half turn and dashed away through the street. A woman cried, as the dog almost ran her over, then a shop owner yelled in anger when Shaggy bumped against the table outside his shop. Expensive leather bags fell all over the street.
"Ah damn," Kakashi grunted, hurrying to the man. "I'm sorry," he quickly apologized and started collecting the bags at a speed that was only slightly above normal civilian speed. He sat the bags back down on the table and looked around that he hadn't missed any.
"Your luck, nothing worse happened," the shop owner grumbled. "Next time we start with a smaller one, nah?"
Kakashi gave him a tight smile before he turned looking for Shaggy. But he was out of sight.
Sighing, Kakashi followed his lingering scent. On the way back, he bought a newspaper at a kiosk. Their nightly reading ritual, he felt, had always helped calm the dog down a little, even after more exciting days or frustrating hunts. He also picked up some vegetables for himself and the dog.
He found Shaggy curled into himself under a bush a bit outside the town. He was hiding his snout under his paws and he was still shaking. Shaggy must've smelt Kakashi's approach, yet all he did, was curl a little tighter as if he didn't want to see him.
"Mah," Kakashi hummed, tickling the dog's head. "No collar," he said. "I just not want you be kicked when not with me. Collar would show you are my." But his explanation didn't help to alleviate whatever fears he might have woken in the dog. Instead Shaggy started whining bitterly.
Kakashi scooted closer on his knees until he knelt right next to Shaggy. This time the dog reacted. He moved the head a little bit towards him, blinked up at Kakashi with regretful eyes, then he bumped the snout against his knee, the way he'd sometimes do to show his affection. Kakashi had a different idea. He still didn't like Shaggy looking like he belonged to nobody. "Something else?" He was aware of how the dog watched each of his movements, so he moved slow, as he pulled his own headband out of his pouch.
"I have this here…" he pointed at his forehead. "Over my eye. It's like scarf for you."
He held it a little closer, so the dog could sniff it and decide what he wanted. Kakashi was sure, Shaggy understood. Shaggy always understood.
Finally, Shaggy lifted his head towards Kakashi, allowing him to tie the soft cloth around his neck. The metal plate weighed it down, but it was wide enough to not be constricting in any way. "Very good, big boy," Kakashi applauded.
**
After Aylsham they walked the rest of the day without incident until Shaggy seemed to get tired on his paws. Kakashi found a nice resting spot between two large rocks right at a small river. Shaggy happily jumped into the river, playing around. Kakashi sat down to wash the vegetables and then offered it all raw. He needed a pot sometime soon. The first few days, he had eaten soldier pills, but now that a week had passed and he had not found a way to go home, he had slowly accepted the possibility that it might take him longer than expected to return to Konoha. He needed to keep the soldier pills for emergencies.
"Shaggy!" He called waving towards the stack of vegetables.
The dog looked over, stopped his playing, and trudged towards him to eat. The stack was quickly gone. Kakashi frowned. Shaggy hadn't gained as much weight as he had hoped for. The malnourishment had to have been severe for such little improvement to show. And yet still, amazingly, he hadn't eaten anything yet, that Kakashi hadn't offered to the dog. It was a sort of discipline he might be expecting from his own ninken, not from a stray dog, no matter how intelligent it seemed.
Shaking his head, he took the newspaper, he had bought. "Convicted Mass-Murderer Sirius Black Suspected in Norfolk or Suffolk County. – Armed and Dangerous." He read mildly interested. That was probably the guy the man in Metton had talked about. The newspaper rustled as he stretched it out a little, so he could read better. "Norwich/London. Friday night, July 23, 1993, Sirius Black escaped his high-security incarceration. Now the police published concerns, that the convicted killer may be hiding along the coastal area of east-central England. Police and the interior ministry warned that Black is armed and dangerous. Any sighting of him or other suspicious occurrences shall be reported to the police immediately. Citizens living along the coast of Norfolk and Suffolk are warned to stay alert. Please call the following emergency number if you know anything. The authorities offer a reward for hints that lead to the arrest of the convict. Black is armed and dangerous, please do not engage."
Kakashi took a small sip of river water, from his waterskin. His eyes scanned the text again, trying to piece the bits of information he understood together. Then his gaze drifted to the dog. He only now realized that Shaggy – unlike normally had not come to rest his head on his lap. Instead, he cowered low, curled together right at the riverside, half-hidden by one of the rocks they were camping between.
"What's up, Shaggy?" he asked, but he received no reaction. Shrugging, he turned back to his newspaper. It had been an exciting day for the dog. Maybe he was tired. It would be understandable.
"In 1981, Black was convicted of murder in 13 accounts, aiding and abetting murder in two accounts and attempted murder of a baby." Kakashi bristled at that. He could understand murder and attempted murder, but young children were difficult. He had never done that himself, though he had heard of other shinobi accidentally killing young children or killing a child after they had already killed the mother, thinking it would otherwise starve. "As well as aiding and abetting a known terrorist orga—"
He stopped as a high-pitched whine reached his ears. Kakashi looked over to the dog. He was shaking again. He folded the newspaper, but in a way, that the article was still on top, so he could continue reading it in quiet. He had understood a decent bit of it and was surprised himself. Learning languages, he decided, was a rather fun and rewarding experience.
"Sleep," he told Shaggy.
The dog whined again. And he didn't stop for a whole while. At first, Kakashi thought, he might suffer from some pain Kakashi hadn't noticed. He didn't remember anything during their trip, but maybe he had injured himself jumping through the water. Or there had been a vegetable he couldn't digest correctly in the mix. Kakashi crawled a little closer, hovering a hand over the shivering body. It was only then, that he realized, that the dog was indeed asleep. He was…dreaming? Did he have a nightmare?
Kakashi sometimes had the feeling that the dog slept fitfully. Kakashi did too. Honestly, he hardly slept at all. Kakashi always waited until exhaustion pushed him over the edge, which meant he might stay two or three days awake before he finally caught some sleep. And then he'd only sleep in bouts of four to five hours – even here where he didn't feel threatened despite the murderer on the loose.
He looked back to the article. There was an image of Black. Shaggy black locks, pasty white skin stretching over a thin face with eyes lying deep in their holes. There was a sort of hysteria forever frozen in the picture. A manic energy, he sometimes saw in his own comrades after coming back from a horrible mission: either a mission gone horribly wrong, or a mission objective that was so horrible from the start, that nobody could go away unscathed from that. If nothing else, one thing was clear from that picture: This man had seen horror. Looking into his eyes, glinting and forever frozen on camera, Kakashi felt he might be the first man in this entire country who could understand the first thing about what Kakashi himself had lived through. The horrors he had seen. The horrors he had committed.
KAKASHI! Rin's voice screamed in his head.
He shook his head, trying to get rid of the memory. It's no memory! She hadn't screamed. She'd whispered, and barely that. It's just in your head. Then he folded the newspaper again and put it aside. He watched the flames of their small fire flickering in the breeze that fought its way past the two big rocks. It would go out soon. Kakashi hadn't built the fire to survive the night. He drew his legs in, hugged them close to his chest. The way the flames danced red and orange reminded him of the Kyuubi's tails. The way the beast had ravaged the village. The way it had clawed a massive hole into Minato—
A whine, louder than the ones before made him flinch and turn around. It sounded odd. Less animalistic. More human. And then, there, right in front of his eyes, Shaggy, the big black starving dog, shifted. Turned and transformed.
The way his limbs and spine stretched, the way his joints shifted, it looked painful, but either the man was used to it or he didn't feel anything after all. He didn't wake. The dog that Kakashi had led around for just about a week and who had led him around the entire day today, vanished and in its stead was a man with tattered rags for clothes, so thin, Kakashi would swear there was nothing between ell and radius bone but a hollowed layer of leathery skin. A human cry escaped from chapped lips, then the man curled in similar to how the dog had curled in tight.
Maybe it was the unfamiliarity of the motion with his now human limbs, that made him wake up.
Notes:
Uuuuuh so let's have the two meet for real now. The way Sirius reveals himself was rather anticlimactic, but unlike Peter, he's not quite used to actually fooling people with his animagus form. So, I thought it could only be a matter of time until he'd give himself away - especially considering he's deeply traumatized and has very bad dreams. Shifting for him is in many ways a defense mechanism now, so he might not always have complete control of when it happens.
Also... there are some odd things when writing a man as a dog. One is that collaring a dog is fine, but doing the same to a man is deeply demeaning. Sirius likely wouldn't have minded if it weren't for his past traumas and the fact that he basically spent the last dozen or so years locked up and chained hand and foot. Sure he could slip out of the chains in his animagus form, but he still wore the chains more often than not. the idea of getting collared is quite frightening for him. He feels horrible about having snapped at Kakashi, I think.