Chapter Text
”Do you smell her?”
Kakashi gave him a look, face carefully blank, before tentatively lowering his mask to sniff the air. The weather was warm, an early summer morning, with birds playing in the stream nearby and the occasional deer crossing their path.
Iruka was the local Hunter. Hunter with a capital H – meaning he didn’t hunt wildlife, that was forbidden in the forests surrounding Konoha, but dark creatures if they wandered too close to the village and became a bother. So close to the capital, it didn’t happen much, and Iruka wasn’t actually skilled enough to take down anything bigger than a tanuki.
It was due to his profession that most people were taken so off guard when Iruka introduced Kakashi as his lover. Kakashi’s silver, almost white hair and his striking, icy blue eye color were too distinct for him to properly blend in with humans. It usually didn’t take people long to correctly infer he must be a werewolf. So when they saw him in a known Hunter’s presence, chatting amiably with the human or buying groceries together, some were bound to misunderstand. ”Can I pet him?” young women would ask, bright eyed and completely obvious to the slight they’d just uttered. Iruka would have found it quite funny if it wasn’t such an obviously sore spot for Kakashi.
”No,” Kakashi said, voice low. ”I can smell traces, but nothing definite. We’re not on her path. Maybe it’s the wind scattering her scent about.”
”But you think it’s her?"
Kakashi shrugged. It was an annoyingly lax gesture considering the urgency of their situation.
”Kakashi,” Iruka said sternly. ”Every hour that passes, our chances of finding her alive decrease. We already passed the twenty four hour mark. I know sniffing out lost children is not your cup of tea, but please try –”
”I know,” Kakashi interrupted. He raked his fingers through his hair in an aggravated gesture. ”I’m trying, okay? I’m just… Tired.”
Iruka’s intuition tingled; Had Kakashi been just a little off ever since he returned from his latest trip? The werewolf had spent a whopping five weeks away on one of his trips and had only returned in the wee hours last night, knocking on Iruka’s door because he’d forgotten to take a key, again. Iruka was fairly certain he would notice if Kakashi came back missing a limb, but other than that, his worry for the six year old Suzy had not left him with a lot of attention to spare on his lover.
”Let’s get this over with and return home as soon as possible,” Kakashi continued, his voice lowering in a plea.
There was definitely something off about him, Iruka decided, but Kakashi would survive while Suzy might not. There would be time to deal with him later.
And, Iruka thought with a small amount of irritation. If Kakashi stayed home more rather than drifting around the world like a kite, on business he didn’t tell his human partner about, this likely wouldn’t even be a problem. Iruka would be able to keep a more careful eye on his partner’s well-being and act on issues sooner. So actually, it was kind of Kakashi’s own fault if he ended up having to be uncomfortable longer.
This wasn’t the first time that Iruka had been forced to think about what Kakashi’s lifestyle meant to their relationship. It was sheer dumb luck that the werewolf had been on his way home when Suzy disappered – While on one of his trips, Kakashi was impossible to contact and Iruka could never count on any estimated return dates to hold true, even approximately. While the uncertainty was a lot to live with, knowing that Iruka could never count on Kakashi being there when he needed the werewolf, that wasn’t actually what weighed on his mind the most. The thought that kept him up at night was, not knowing what it all meant.
Were they committed to each other? Did Kakashi actually view him as a potential candidate for that, as he would another werewolf? Iruka thought they were doing pretty well, with just over two years of this kind of living under their belt, but it was all pretty confusing with their cultures clashing in ways that Iruka knew left both him and Kakashi reeling. It would have helped if Kakashi spoke about his expectations for the relationship, but the werewolf was very tightlipped about anything personal and especially on matters that involved the werewolf species in any way. Iruka could understand this, as information on werewolves would surely be used against them if it got in the wrong hands, but he was trying to date one. Emphasis on the word trying, it sometimes felt like.
And sometimes, when Iruka’s mind took a dip in the darkness that existed within every human, he wondered if Kakashi’s time spent away didn’t mean he had another home elsewhere. What kind of home that might be (with whom), Iruka didn’t let himself speculate, but the tightening in his gut spoke enough of his worries.
One day Iruka would bring it up. Not today, but one day, when Kakashi didn’t stare at engagement rings with the same revulsion as he did pet dogs’ collars.
~~~ <3 ~~~
Iruka looked up at the sky. The blaring sun was right above them, frying them like chicken legs in an owen. He wiped sweat from his brow. ”I hope I’m not putting you off the trail. By sweating so much, I mean.” His shirt was soaked through, but that was partly due to the water bottle he’d poured over his head some minutes earlier. He didn’t let himself think about what the heat meant for little Suzy. Hopefully she’d found cover.
Kakashi didn’t respond. He sat on a large rock, crouching in a way that was distinctly non-human, looking around thoughtfully.
It had been raining when Suzy got lost yesterday morning, and almost any trail would have been washed away. Using Kakashi to track her was a last ditch effort to find her alive, or if not that, her body.
Iruka let himself study his lover for a minute. Compared to earlier this morning, Kakashi seemed better, more relaxed. Maybe it was the excercise helping him calm down, or just the passing of hours. There was still an edge to him, but when the werewolf looked around curiously there was only a hint of tension detectable in his body, something that could easily be overlooked if one did not know to look for it.
”There’s not much of a trail to follow,” Kakashi said honestly.
Iruka frowned. As the hours passed, he knew their chances of finding Suzy alive dropped significantly. ”How likely is that?” Kakashi looked to him. ”I mean, do trails just disappear? It was raining, but…” Werewolves renowned for their ability to track prey, which was why humans liked to use them so much. The ones that didn’t own them as symbols of wealth, that is. If Kakashi couldn’t make out a trail to follow, it made sense that the villagers’ dogs had failed to do so.
”Rain doesn’t make trails disappear. Not immediately at least,” Kakashi said.
”So?” Iruka prodded.
”If we’d crossed her path, I’m fairly certain I would have been able to tell.”
”That’s not very helpful,” Iruka pointed out, rubbing the crease between his brows. ”Especially seeing as we’ve made a pretty clean route around where she disappeared. She must have gone somewhere.”
”Gone as in walked or gone as in disappeared?”
”Of course she walked,” Iruka snorted. Kakashi looked around, and this time Iruka noted he wasn’t actually looking at the ground. He was looking around, as in around the air. A lamp lit up in Iruka’s mind.
The air. If she hadn’t walked, if someone or something had whisked her away… Dark creatures did not often kidnap humans, especially not in these parts of Fire Country, but occasionally it happened.
”Air trail?” Iruka said, sucking in a breath.
”Probably,” Kakashi acknowledged, lifting his mask back up over his nose. ”That’s why it’s so difficult to locate. By now, her scent’s spread all over the forest by the wind and the rain.”
”What about the person who took her? Can you track them?”
”If they walked,” Kakashi said, in a voice that indicated they hadn’t.
What kind of dark creature kidnapped someone without walking? A six year old girl was small, but not small enough to be taken by a regular bird.
”Try,” Iruka insisted. Kakashi glanced at him. Iruka didn’t know how to read the look on his face, but Kakashi did not move. Iruka gestured with his arms. ”Kakashi, we have to try! If there’s something we can do for her—”
”If she was taken by a creature it’s very unlikely that’s she’s still alive.”
Iruka knew that. He knew, but he still needed to try. He thought of Suzy’s parents, of poor Hiruma-san who was young but loved his wife so much and of Ayako-san, who had divorced and remarried to have biological children. She was older, already in her mid-forties, and unlikely to have more. Losing Suzy would absolutely crush her. He’d already seen how distraught the pair had been and he’d promised them, promised that he would do his utmost to find and retrieve Suzy.
Iruka was only human, not a miracle worker, but he knew he’d never give up. He squared his jaw and stared Kakashi in the eye. ”She could still be alive. We need to try.”
”No.”
”Kakashi!” Iruka said, aghast ”This is not the time to be difficult. Each minute that we waste – arguing – We don’t have time for this!”
Kakashi straightened slightly. At first Iruka thought it was a sign that his words were getting through to him, but any such illusions were dispelled when the werewolf fastened Iruka with a very unimpressed stare. Though still on the rock, he loomed, very beastly in that moment, his inner werewolf shining through.
”Kakashi,” Iruka said again, trying to be firm, but he couldn’t help the way his voice wavered.
”Looking for her is a waste of time and effort. Even if we, miraculously, find her, she’s bound to be dead.”
”But—”
”No,” Kakashi said. He did not move. Iruka opened his mouth to bark at him, shout at him, anything to make Kakashi change his mind, when Iruka relized in a startling flash exactly what Kakashi had meant those times when he said, often during an argument, that Iruka treated him like a pet.
It wasn’t on purpose — Iruka had a tendency to speak sternly to anyone under the age of fifteen and sometimes Kakashi acted like he was seven, not twenty seven years old. Even Kakashi could not deny that. This, along with Iruka’s admittedly pushy nature… Well, Iruka thought it fairly understandable that under the right circumstances he might be tempted to order the werewolf around, but Kakashi knew him and Iruka never wished for the power to bend the werewolf ’s will in situations where he truly objected.
Except for now. Iruka felt bile gather in his mouth when he realized this. Kakashi was his lover, but still a being, an adult, with free will. If Kakashi truly didn’t want to help, there was little he could do to force the werewolf’s hand. It wasn’t like Iruka could claim there wasn’t some sense to what the werewolf was saying.
Kakashi straightened out his long legs, hands stoved deep in his pocket. ”I’m going home,” he said. Nothing harsh about the words. Just stating a fact.
Iruka closed his eyes and bit back an angry retort.
He could argue, but would that help? How long did he have to spare? A lot of time, one might think, since without Kakashi it was unlikely he’d find any trail. Yet if Iruka did insist, he knew it would only feed the resentment Kakashi felt.
”Alright,” Iruka said. Surprisingly, his voice came out sounding almost normal. There’s food in the fridge, he intended to say, but the words would have come out spitefully and a part of him didn’t want to five Kakashi even that much. Instead he said, ”Don’t wait up,” before turning on his heel, starting his journey deeper into the forest. Without Kakashi.
This would be a disaster. It was unlikely that he’d find anything without Kakashi, they’d tried with the villagers all day yesterday, but he couldn’t give up. Would not.
”That’s the wrong way,” Kakashi called after him. Then a moment later, when Iruka did not turn around or respond. ”You’ll never find anything. The girl is dead and your chances of finding her body are literally nil.”
Iruka continued steadily, fist tightening at his side.
”Iruka!” Kakashi shouted after him.
Iruka turned his head enough to shout over his shoulder. ”I’ll keep walking until I happen upon the nest. Might take a while!” Before he could stop himself, a jab escaped his lips. ”I won’t be longer than you’ve ever been. What’s your record? Nine and a half weeks, I think.” A Kakashi classic, ’I won’t be gone much more than a week’. Iruka had been worried sick, almost throttling the werewolf when he finally found him standing behind his door with a sheepish smile. ”I promise I won’t be longer than that!”
Kakashi said something, or made a sound, but it was too low for Iruka to make out with the distance.
Iruka turned to face the way he was going. He squared his shoulders, sighed deep in his chest, and said to himself, ”Here goes nothing.”
And so began the journey of a lifetime.
~~~ <3 ~~~
Iruka liked forests. Had always liked them, since a child. His father had been a lumberjack and whenever life or school got to be too much for him, Iruka would escape into the forest to find his father. It was a miracle how he never got lost, but each time, he always found his father somehow. A blessed child, his mother used to say, giving him a kiss on his forehead.
(Iruka had believed her until that fateful night that would see her and Iruka’s father’s death and set him on the course of becoming a Hunter so he could prevent tragedies like that from happening. )
”I need to do this,” Iruka said quietly to himself. He eyed the forest around him, but it gave him no hints.
How long had he already walked? He threw a glance at the sky to take in the sun’s position. Past noon by a few hours. Maybe an hour and a half or two hours since he’d parted ways with Kakashi. Iruka hunched his shoulders, refusing to acknowledge that he was already missing the other man. He was a team player by heart, always feeling better having other people around, but until he started finding something, he’d be very alone.
Iruka walked all day, until eventually the sun disappeared beyond the horizon.
Grasshoppers whirred everywhere around him. Iruka took a last clunk of water before leaning back against the tree he’d decided would be good enough to sleep against. He kept his gun close at hand, but let himself drift off feeling relatively secure. He’d spun a thin line around himself, almost invisible in the dark. It would give him enough warning to shoot if somehting tried to creep up on him while he slept.
~~~ <3 ~~~
He woke up to sunlight and birdsong. No limbs missing. The line he’d spun around himself…
It had been cut.
Iruka stared down at it with wide eyes, before looking around the forest. It remained quiet around him.
~~~ <3 ~~~
He didn’t make much progress on the second day. On the third, it finally happened.
Iruka walked right up to the nest. Er, base. Hut. It was a hut in the middle of the forest. No road, no nothing, the hut itself looked older than life itself but someone had been taking care of it, even covering it in leaves and foliage so it would not stand out easily. Iruka wouldn’t have found it unless he’d literally walked right up to it.
He stood before it, wide-eyed, unable to believe he’d actually done it.
”This is it,” a voice said behind him, and Iruka spun on his heel, bringing a hand to his chest. Kakashi stood some way back, leaning his shoulder into a large tree. He looked visibly tired, nodding his head towards the hut. ”Now that we’re close it’s obvious. Her scent leads here.”
”Kakashi!” Iruka hissed in surprise. He gaped, then pointed at the hut. ”You’re sure?” Kakashi nodded.
Iruka didn’t let himself dwell on the fact that Kakashi had apparently followed him—How long, he wasn’t sure—But turned to face the hut. A witch’s hut. He’d heard tales of it, all the children in Konoha had, but nobody had ever found it and he’d thought it was nothing but a tale. Obviously not.
She even kidnapped children. It hadn’t been just something to scare kids with!
”What are you going to do?” Kakashi asked.
”Isn’t it obvious?” Iruka said. ”I’ll knock.”
The werewolf sighed. ”And you think she’ll hand over the child just like that?”
”If I ask nicely,” Iruka said.
”Iruka—” From the corner of his eye Iruka saw Kakashi rub his face. Suddenly it struck him just how tired the werewolf looked, the lines on his face spoke of something else, or more, than just a few nights of poor sleep. ”I won’t be much use to you if you need help. I shouldn’t even be here.”
It sounded the most honest Iruka had heard him in a while.
”Are you ill?” Iruka asked, brows creasing. He thought back to Kakashi’s unease—When he’d been on edge, but not necessarily tired or weak.
”Not in the traditional sense,” said an elderly woman’s voice. Iruka tensed and he heard Kakashi snarl. Slowly he turned to face what he realized must be the Witch. He swallowed thickly.
”Good afternoon,” Iruka greeted stiltedly. Her eyes, silver like a fox’s, focused on him.
”No wonder you found me,” she murmurred almost too quietly to hear. ”I always was weak for a man of good manners.”
”P-Pardon?” Iruka paled.
”Nevermind. You might as well come in,” she opened the door wider and gestured with her hand. Iruka heard Kakashi snarl some way off. ”Oh don’t be silly, you.” To Iruka, ”Take wolf boy with you if you want. He’s a bit prickly at this moment.”
”I, um, yes.” Iruka looked over his shouler, but Kakashi was already running up to him, stilling at Iruka’s side. The hair on his neck rose hearing the threatening low growl that the werewolf eminated.
The witch gave Kakashi a look. Iruka wasn’t sure how to interpret it. She loooked to Iruka. ”Come in. I’ve got tea. As it happens, I accidentally made too much for one person.”
~~~ <3 ~~~
In the murky light of the hut, Kakashi’s sick demeanor became all the more apparent. If the werewolf was pale usually, he was now positively porcelain. ”You okay?” Iruka whispered gently, giving Kakashi’s masked cheek a stroke. Kakashi accepted the gesture greedily, leaning into Iruka’s touch.
”I’m giving wolf boy a special blend. It will keep him sober for us a little while longer.”
Iruka glanced to the witch.
”I’m,” Kakashi began quietly. He cleared his throat. When Iruka lowered his hand, Kakashi grasped his fingers. ”I meant to tell you earlier… That is –”
”How long do you still have, wolf boy? This will slow the progress, not actually stop it.”
Kakashi squeezed his eye closed hearing the witch’s voice. Iruka tightened his fingers around Kakashi’s hand to keep him put lest he actually trying to bite the witch. Kakashi looked like he just might.
”Er, just to be clear. It sounds like we’re talking about a fatal disease. Please tell me I’m gravely mistaken,” Iruka said to Kakashi, half as a way to distract him but also because he really, really wanted someone to clarify.
”I’m not dying,” Kakashi said through clenched teeth. ”It’s the mating imperative.”
”Heat?”
”Rut,” Kakashi looked appalled. ”I’m not a bitch."
”Oh,” Iruka sais sheepishly. ”That’s why you’re…” Iruka lifted his hand to Kakashi’s cheek again. Despite the fierce look on his face Kakashi melted into Iruka’s touch, his eye closing slightly.
The witch returned with a swinging kettle, tutting her tongue. ”Don’t let him rub himself into you too much. I can tell you’re the mate – He wouldn’t be here otherwise – And contact can trigger the mating frenzy. Not that there is any avoiding it, but we don’t need to bring it forth prematurely. ”
Iruka stiffened. ”H-How’s that tea coming?” he asked, hoping to steer clear of a war. Judging by the absolutely murderous look on Kakashi’s face… He might already be too late.
~~~ <3 ~~~
”How’s it taste?” Iruka asked quietly, peering into Kakashi’s cup. He was sitting on a large leather sofa with Kakashi on the handrest.
”Like shit.” Kakashi didn’t bother being half as quiet as Iruka.
”Mine tastes kinda weird, but not bad,” Iruka said looking into his own. It was a deep red with brown undertones to it, a fairly normal looking tea, while Kakashi’s was more of a yellow-ish brown. Iruka didn’t want to say it aloud, but he’d been curious about Kakashi’s drink because it smelled so strongly – A scent he couldn’t place, but he thought he recognized it from somewhere. Maybe a specific type of paint remover.
”Now,” the witch said, settling across from them. ”I understand you came for the girl?”
”Suzy,” Iruka confirmed. ”Her parents are very worried."
The witch shrugged. ”Nice girl,” she acknowledged. ”It’s a pity to give her away, but it can’t be helped. She’s in the room over there,” she tilted her head. Iruka stood up quickly and Kakashi with him. ”No pets allowed.”
Iruka took Kakashi’s hand, said ,”Kakashi’s not a pet,” and dragged the werewolf with him into a small bedroom.
Kakashi closed the door behind them. It was a small, nice room, with a single bed in the centre and a little girl sleeping peacefully under the covers.
”Suzy!” Iruka exclaimed, rushing up to her. He began shaking her body, but her eyes remained closed.
”The witch’s charmed her. You need the hag to wake her up.”
Iruka looked up at Kakashi. The werewolf held his face carefully blank, but this time Iruka could see it for what it was – An effort to control himself, not a tool to shut Iruka out. Iruka felt warmth in every crevice of his body.
”I’ll ask nicely,” Iruka decided, feeling very optimistic that all would work out. This time, Kakashi just shrugged.
”Seems to work out for you.”
Iruka rewarded his lover’s trust in him with a blinding smile.
~~~ <3 ~~~
Fifteen minutes later they were on their way, with a happily chattering girl riding piggyback on Iruka. Iruka was glad to note she seemed well if very, very enthusiastic -- she’d been on an adventure! And wanted to tell them all about it! And look, there’s a squirrel! Iruka didn’t comment as Kakashi remained deliberately far behind, listening to the six years old girl with far more patienece than his lover likely would ever manage.
The trip back took just under two days since Kakashi was a far better navigator than him, and they headed straight for Suzy’s house. Just about to cross the street over to their house, Kakashi caught Iruka’s hand, stopping him.
Iruka looked to him curiously. Kakashi’s fingers squeezed his. ”Don’t be long.”
Iruka nodded. Suzy slept peacefully on his back, a small trail of drool coating his left shoulder. Kakashi’s fingers lingered, before slowly letting go. ”Will you be going ahead?”
”I’ll wait.” Kakashi’s eyes flickered to the house. He began to back away, taking cover in the shadows just as the front door to the house opened, revealing a single figure.
”Sorry? Is someone…”
”Papa!”
”S-Suzy? Is it really… Ayako! It’s her, Umino-san found Suzy!”
~~~ <3 ~~~
Iruka managed to extract himself with the excuse that he needed a shower and sleep. Suzy’s parents were overwhelmingly happy, so he didn’t think they truly minded having their daughter just for themselves, though they insisted on rewarding him later, which Iruka politely tried to decline. Not that he’s certain he managed with that.
Kakashi waited for him to cross the street before appraching.
”Is there something I need to know?” Iruka said, voice barely above a whisper. Kakashi could hear him easily; When Iruka came close enough, he grasped the human’s hand to nuzzle into his palm. Iruka stared, fascinated. He could tell there was something different about the werewolf just looking at him and Kakashi seemed to be moving into a new phase quickly.
”When in human form, I’ll just be an unusually horny man. Indulge me, or keep me confined in the bedroom if I get to be too much for you. I don’t care. Just don’t leave our home, or invite others in while I’m like this. That’s all I ask."
”That doesn’t sound too bad.” Kakashi, clearly relieved, lowered his mask to kiss Iruka. Iruka leaned into his lips, feeling pointed teeth. He laughed a little. ”Are you sure you can retain your human form though?”
”It’s not like the full moon. I’ll be,” Kakashi spoke between kisses. ”Human. I can control it.”
”What if you’re distracted?” Kakashi nipped on his lips. Iruka yelped.
”When I shift outside of the full moon, I retain my human mind. This is no different.”
”Okay,” Iruka gasped.
”Home?” Kakashi asked. Iruka nodded. Strong hands grasped his hips and before Iruka could comprehend what was happening, he found himself dangling ass in the air over the werewolf’s left shoulder. Iruka was too stupefied to even protest at first, before realization dawned on him and he began to fight his capture with vigor. He hammered on the werewolf’s back with his first, kicking with his feet, which Kakashi tried to still. ”Hey, hey, you’ll make me drop you.”
”That’s what I want, asshole!”
Kakashi grinned, satisfied. He’d caught his mate, gotten permission, and now he’d spend his first ever rut in someone’s presence.
(Kakashi forgot to mention two things:
One, he might have trashed a mirror or two in his anger, upon being told to return while Iruka kept chasing after the little human girl. Iruka was bound to notice the moment they stepped in through the door.
Two, werewolves mate for life. Spending a rut with someone is therefore comparable to marriage, since a bond is almost certain to form.
Except Kakashi had been trying to spend his rut elsewhere for weeks, having felt it creeping upon him, but whenever he got far enough away from home, it just seemed to… Dissipate. It took him a while to figure out what it meant, and he was rather proud of himself for having slipped from under Tsunade’s thumb as smoothly as he did.
Only an idiot would bind themselves to a human, those fickle, selfish creatures that would find love as often and easily as werewolves found prey in the forest. Tsunade warned him, Kakashi’s friends warned him and he did everything right.
Yet, didn’t Tsunade also warn him that something like this could happen?
”Keep playing that game and sooner or later you’ll be caught by the mousetrap.
Kakashi had felt himself and Iruka growing closer, but the fact that his ruts started gravitating towards the human indicated they were a lot closer to sealing the deal than he’d thought. So he thought, is it possible to be a genius without some stupidity to balance it out? )