A while ago I promised silvercaffiene some Katsuko drabbles in return for some lovely fanart she made for me! The prompts were: "Katsuko" and "summer"! I got kind of carried away, so there are...two drabbles in all their sticky, unbeta-ed glory!
This first drabble is set sometime in Katsuko's genin team's days, just a couple of years after they graduate from the Academy.
P.S. Grateful thanks goes out to Ki, who is an HTML goddess and helped me with the indecipherable language of the 'net. *sheepish grin*
The characters! Ueno Katsuko: 11 years old. Kenjutsu specialist and all-around tomboy. Arata Benirou: 11.5 years old. Ninjutsu specialist, redhead. Sumiyoshi Nori: 11 years old. Genjutsu specialist/jack of all trades. Prissy, stuck-up. Long blond hair. Hideki-sensei: Late 30's. Weapons specialist. Tall, gruff, and overworked.
"I", Arata Beni announced with solemn dignity. "Have stuffed a frog down my pants."
Katsuko laughed so hard she fell off her tree branch.
Nori raised an eyebrow, packing volumes of dialogue in a single pointed look.
Hideki-sensei simply let out a long sigh and massaged the deep lines permanently etched into his forehead. "Beni," he said. "Why did you put a frog there?"
"Because--"
Katsuko interrupted Beni's preening. "Cause today's your sister's birthday, ain't it? You're plannin' on droppin' yer pants in the middle of the party and letting that frog jump around."
Beni blinked, momentarily stunned. "How'd you know that?"
"We talked about it, dumbass. I helped you plan it out." She shook her head at him, sadly.
Beni furrowed his head, gripping the waistband of his long cinched trousers tightly to keep his amphibious prisoner from escaping. At last, his face lit in comprehension. "Right! I remember! That was right before you broke my nose in that spar!" He cackled, strolling over to where Katsuko had fallen on the ground and offering his hand for a triumphant high-five.
Katsuko slapped his palm, lazy grin stretching the bandages on her cheeks.
Nori snorted. "Hideki-sensei, as amusing as it is watching these simpletons trying to put two and two together and coming up with five, didn't we have a lesson planned today?"
Hideki-sensei merely sighed as the simpletons in question turned twin glares on their hapless teammate. He turned around and started walking away. "I'll get the band-aids. Come find me when you're done fighting."
The second drabble!
Summer in Whirlpool country is warm and sticky. Katsuko takes a breath, feels humid air filter into her lungs and wrap around her chest like a blanker. Sweat drips down the side of her neck; her shirt clings wetly in uncomfortable places when she moves.
It is too loud, and too quiet, and the dead boy at her feet isn't doing anything for her peace of mind.
"Katsu!" Nori staggers to his feet, clawing at the garrotte the dead boy had wrapped around his throat when Katsuko had charged in. His voice is a horrible rasp. "Katsu! Are you alright?"
"I should be asking you that," Katsuko croaks. The dead boy's eyes are open. His cheeks are smooth and hairless, his neck is a bloody mess, and his lips are plump and full as a girl's.
"Katsu? Katsuko? It's over," Nori says, suddenly five feet closer and very worried-looking.
Her hands are bloody. The trenches are shaded by a row of trees and the cliff wall. The dead boy lies with his torso in the shade. The blood seeping from his wounds is already starting to dry under the oppressive heat.
Katsuko licks her lips and stares up at Nori, smiling crookedly. "I always expected my first time to be a bit more...climactic."