safety [Kakashi Hatake x OC]

thirty-three

Even in his sleep, Kakashi was gentle towards her. Subconsciously, he wanted to hold Eri. So, when his waking consciousness dissipated with sleep, he did reach out and grab her hand, tangling his fingers with hers and inching as close to her as possible without touching a single scratch as they healed.

The sun woke the woman up the next morning. She wasn't in pain, but her back was definitely sore. She groaned and stretched her shoulders, then realized she didn't feel the mattress sink behind her with the weight of a body, and she was cold, so there was no warmth sharing the bed with her.

Kakashi was gone, and she wondered with a heavy heart if he had gotten up after she fell asleep and went to sleep on the couch beneath the broken window. A little uncertain and panicked, she quickly got up and opened the bedroom door.

He was in the living room putting a plank of wood over the window as he paused to look at the girl. Then, he put on an assuring grin and said, "Good morning. You must have slept well."

She glanced at the clock in the kitchen, reading that it was nearly noon. "Oops." She muttered, then narrowed her eyes at the scene before her. "Did you... clean everything?" The blood was cleaned out of the carpet and there were no signs of glass. Obviously, it would take time for someone to come and fix the window.

"Oh, yeah." He acknowledged nonchalantly. "Be careful, the floor is still a little wet."

"Kakashi..." She gasped, feeling guilty for what had happened and not cleaning it up. "... I would have helped."

He chuckled light-heartedly. "Don't worry about it. You were busy resting and recovering." He finished fastening the wood to the windowsill.

"But all of this was my fault."

His warm gaze became stern and serious as he approached her, and he dropped his large hand on top of her head. "Eri. Nothing that you've had to deal with is your fault. Your circumstances are not your fault." He then ruffled her mauve locks, lightening the mood once again and assuring her of her security in Konoha. "Please don't ever blame yourself for things like this."

The girl couldn't bring herself to say anything, as she looked up at him with her big, dark eyes, filled with hope and trust.

"You should go get ready. I have to meet with Tsunade-sama to give her a report of the mission."

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Kakashi wouldn't tell Eri how the meeting went. They picked up a bottle sake on the way home, but the man insisted that he'd only tell her when they got back. They agreed to keep the attack in the middle of the night a secret. It didn't make him trust her any less, so he wouldn't bring it up in any position that would make her look bad.

"So, are you ready to hear what the Hokage said?" He raised a questioning brow and started to pour the sake.

"It's rude of you to hold out on me for so long." She bit her lower lip. She knew there was something that he was hiding.

He chuckled and lifted his glass, beckoning for the curious girl to bump hers with his. "I told Tsunade-sama about the mission, and she agrees that you're proving yourself a trustworthy person. So, while our living arrangements still stand, she is okay with you not being under my watch twenty-four-seven."

"Really?!" She gasped excitedly.

"Yes." He nodded with a kind-hearted smile hidden behind his blue mask. "Under the Hokage's command, you may leave and explore the village on your own; you just cannot leave the village unsupervised, and you cannot be out past eight in the evening unsupervised." He shrugged. "So, there's still limits, but it's a lot freer than it was, and it proves that you're in good standing with Konoha."

She was so happy that she could actually leave the apartment of her own accord - mostly - and not have to be under Kakashi's watchful eye the entire time. Granted, he always did allow her some freedom beyond the boundaries established by the Hokage, but this meant that she could do more, see more, and help him out more by running errands and taking care of things when he wasn't home.

He ruffled her hair once more, embracing her enthusiasm and comforted by her happiness. "You're free to do what you want."

Eri beamed and consumed her small glass of sake in one swig, then declared, "I - in my new-found freedom - am going to go for a walk." She was sober; the sake didn't affect her much because it was such a small amount, but the frenzy of excitement got her feeling dramatic.

"Just be home by eight." He grinned, showed by his closed eye.

"Thanks, dad." She teased, heading for the door, but not leaving before he tossed her a key.

He hummed thoughtfully, rubbing the back of his head, and blurted out loud, failing to responsibly filter his words, "I think I like "daddy" better."