Happy New year!

I do not own Haikyuu.

Natsume's Guide to Crows, Owls, and Kings

Chapter Eight:

We'll be alright

Tip Number Ten: Communication is important.

"Fuck!"

Cards scattered across the linen sheets and Natsume groaned, leaning back into the medical bed as she gazed helplessly at the cards in front of her.

"I have a good poker face." Akaashi replied simply, gathering the cards together and adding his winning hand to the mix as he began to shuffle.

"Too good," Natsume tugged at the bandages around her arm, Akaashi's eyes flickering to her arm with the movement as she sighed. "Good thing we're not betting anything or I'd be broke by now."

"We can always raise the stakes," Akaashi added, letting the cards fall in an even bridge into his waiting hand.

Natsume gave him a pointed look at the smoothness of his shuffling and he handed her the deck. Eyes brightening, Natsume shuffled through the cards and began to hum quietly, a pleased smile on her lips.

"How have the latest missions been going?"

"Haven't been deployed as much," Akaashi responded quietly, seated in a chair beside her bed as he idly watched her bandaged fingers move across the deck. "Team Gorilla, Meat and Fish, and Sawamura were deployed and did heavy damage along the enemy lines. Things have been silent since then."

"That's good," Natsume frowned as a card slipped from the deck and she reached to grab it back. "Hopefully by the time things start up again I should be good and ready to go."

Gun metal blue eyes stayed locked on her form, and Natsume refused to meet his gaze. "You know I'll have to go back."

"I do," Akaashi answered without missing a beat. "I hope it will be in better conditions, though."

Natsume's eyes flickered at that, the injuries still leaving a dull ache on her body and far, far from her mind.

The sooner she was back out there, the sooner she could be making a difference.

"I have a mission debriefing with Captain Bokuto in a few minutes," Akaashi stood, moving the chair back to its original position along the wall and Natsume couldn't help but feel a little pang of sadness in her chest at the thought of being stuck in this room by herself again.

She hated being alone.

Soft fingers glided across her forehead and Natsume jolted, eyes snapping up and becoming ensnared in those swirling irises of his as Akaashi leaned forward slightly, eyes never leaving hers.

"Get some rest, Kaito-san."

The barest hints of a blush dusted her cheeks and Akaashi offered a half smile before he pulled away, making his way to the door and adding over his shoulder—

"I didn't mean the war to be in better conditions, by the way."

Click.

Thankfully, Natsume's boredom didn't last long.

Just as the solider had begun to consider how much damage she could take hobbling down the halls and sneaking outside to get some fresh air, the door to her room swung open wide and a familiar bundle of orange energy came barreling in, eyes bright and smile wide with his shadow at his heels.

"Hinata!" Natsume shifted to sit up in her bed, a wide smile touching her lips as Hinata bounded into her room and Kageyama closed the door after them. "What brings you guys here?"

"We had a few hours free before evening practice!" Hinata cheered, bounding over to her bed with a face that was positively beaming.

"...How are you?" Kageyama inquired, eyes zeroing in on Natsume's bandages and she waved him off.

"A lot better, don't worry."

It'd been about a few days since she'd awoken from her supposed "coma", though Kiyoko had explained it was more of a temporary unconsciousness. After several long hours of convincing the men in Natsume's room that she was fine and wasn't going to die if they left, she'd finally had a moment of peace to herself.

In a few minutes after that, Natsume had curled into a ball, tears streaking down her face as she clutched her injured arm and berated herself for how useless and stupid she'd been.

Though in the short span of time, Oikawa and Iwaizumi had been the ones to dominate her room. She'd had to fight through hell and back to try and get Oikawa away—who'd gone so far as to threaten to chain her to the bed if she even thought about going anywhere while they were gone on the mission—and Iwaizumi had merely been silent, fingers brushing hers before he slipped out the door.

I need to talk to him. Oikawa, sneaky as he was, was still far more expressive with the things he felt than Iwaizumi was. Make sure he's all right.

"Is there anything you'd like to do?" Hinata inquired cheerfully, hopping up and down beside her bed while Kageyama pulled a chair over. "We could play a game—or I could grab you something to eat!"

"To be honest, the one thing I want the most right now is some fresh air," Natsume sighed, looking ruefully toward the shut door. "But I have a feeling if I take a foot outside that door and the wrong people catch me I'll be tackled to the ground."

"But you're better now, right?" Hinata inquired, brows furrowing as his eyes wildly scanned up and down her body.

"Without a doubt," Natsume teasingly flexed her arm in response and grinned. "Honestly, I could go out and train now and really start getting my body into shape, but—"

"But you should make sure you're properly healed," Kageyama protested. "There's no need for you out there right now—"

"Kageyama!" Hinata hissed, slapping his friend on the back and Kageyama whirled around.

"What the hell was that for you shrimp—"

"You can't say things like that! You'll hurt Kaito-senpai's feelings!"

"But that's not what I meant!"

"I really don't mind," Natsume smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of her head. "I understand the mission Tooru and Hajime went on with the others really helped set things forward. But still..."

Her eyes went a little faraway and both Hinata and Kageyama paused, growing silent as she gripped the edge of her bed sheets. "Until this war is over, no one rests."

"K-Natsume-senpai!" Hinata shouted, and Natsume turned to him curiously.

"I'm right here, Hinata, no need to shout—"

"I promise that next time, I'll protect you!" Hinata exclaimed, reaching forward and clasping one of her hands in both of his, and Natsume blinked with wide eyes. "I-I won't let anything like this happen to you ever again!"

"I-I-Idiot!" Kageyama snapped. "You can't even do anything! I'll be the one to protect everyone. Just watch! I'll surpass even Captain Oikawa and—"

"Yeah, right!"

The two grappled with each other, throwing insults this way and that. Natsume watched the two of them with wide eyes before her lips curled upwards, a loud laugh leaving her lips and they turned to her with comically quizzical expressions.

"I'll take you two on that, then," Natsume giggled, bringing a hand to her mouth and throwing them a cheeky grin. "But I think I'll be the one protecting you two in the end."

"Y-You're on!"

"I'll be the best, you'll see!"

"You asked to see me?"

The door to Natsume's room swung shut with a quiet click. Sawamura Daichi stood only a little ways from the door, a small smile on his lips, eyes tired and shoulders slumped at the corners. He was still clad in his uniform, dust coating the edges and mud caked on the edge of his boots. Natsume figured this must've meant that Oikawa and Iwaizumi would be back soon as well, and she needed to make the time she had left worth it.

"I was getting visits from everyone else, but I hadn't seen you yet," Natsume murmured softly.
"As conceited as that may sound."

"Not conceited," Daichi shook his head, a smile that didn't reach his eyes playing on his lips. "There's just a lot of people here who care about you."

The room was quiet. Daichi's eyes silently surveyed the left over damage on her body. A bandage was still wrapped thickly around her head, making her hair fall in uneven clumps around her. His gaze followed down to the bandages around her arm and covering her fingers.

"You look better."

"I feel better."

The silence grew thicker, and Daichi's eyes turned downwards. A soft, heavy sigh left his lips, and while he looked as though he wanted nothing more than to take a seat somewhere, he began to turn. "If you don't mind, Kaito, I've got a mission briefing to finish so I'll just—"

There was a loud clatter and the rattle of metal. Daichi whirled around and his eyes widened as Natsume clambered out of bed, face wincing with the effort of trying to keep herself upright. "Kaito! What do you think you're—"

"I'm sorry, Captain Sawamura." Daichi froze, hands hovering in place as Natsume slowly lowered herself to the floor.

Bowing her head, Natsume gripped her legs and kneeled. "I'm sorry; for jeparodizing the mission, for getting in everyone's way, for causing more trouble than needed—all of it, I formally apologized. I am willing to take whatever punishment you see fit for my careless actions."

The faint sound of metal clanking and nurses chatting filled the stagnant air. Natsume held her breath, brows furrowed and eyes trained hard on the floor in front of her, unable to see Daichi's face.

"That's a lie," Daichi said finally, and Natsume's head shot up. "There's one punishment I would like to give, but I know you won't take it."

Her eyes flickered, a small smile curling on the corner of her lips. "If you are referring to resigning from my post, then yes, I further apologize, Captain Sawamura. I would not be able to do such a thing. Nor do I see the need too."

"I have a handful of people arguing otherwise," Daichi added.

"They'd miss me too much." Natsume shot back.

"Not as much as they'd miss you if you were gone for good."

The silence was heavy, suffocating. Natsume remained still, not a single word leaving her lips as Daichi looked at her for a long time.

Slowly, soft footsteps echoed around the room, and Natsume waited as Daichi came to a halt before her. A hand reached outwards and she willed herself not to flinch—this was Daichi after all, her captain, the one man she knew everyone in this facility was able to rely on no matter what. His fingers found purchase in her hair and he gave it a gentle ruffle, eyes tired and shoulders slumping from the fatigue of the last few days.

"Apology accepted, second lieutenant Kaito." Natsume's eyes peered upwards hesitantly, and she felt all the anxiety in her body escape at the sight of his soft smile. "Take care of yourself, alright?"

"Just take care of yourself for me."

Natsume froze, eyes flickering for a brief moment until she paused, Daichi's grip on her head growing tighter and her face began to pale. "S-Sawamura, that kinda hurts—"

"I hope you realize, lieutenant," Natsume jerked, face an ashen white as she shakily peered upwards and found Daichi grinning down at her, face shadowed by the thin lighting.

"That I will come up with a suitable punishment."

"Y-Yessir."

"Oho~ Is the kitten making a brave escape?"

Natsume jerked, nearly screaming had she not clamped her hands over her mouth. The action forced her to lose hold of her crutches though and she wobbled, staggering forward until an arm curled around her waist and kept her grounded. She arched her head back, meeting Kuroo's mischievous gaze and sighed in relief. "Oh, thank god it's just you."

"Just me?" Kuroo grinned, eyes flickering almost dangerously. "Last I checked, you're supposed to be in bed for another week, aren't you?"

"Five more days, actually." Natsume patted his arm and Kuroo kept his hold on her, using his foot to step on the tip of the crutch and swing it upwards.

He smoothly grasped it with his free hand and Natsume clapped in response, reaching for the crutch until Kuroo pulled it out of reach. "Oh, come on—I don't have a lot of time! I barely convinced Shima to radio me the gorilla duos coordinates so I could sneak out."

"Oh? How sneaky," Kuroo grinned, cat-like eyes peering at her through the mess of his bedhead. Natsume felt herself stiffen slightly, eyeing him warily.

"Well, if you don't mind now, could you pick up that second crutch and hand me that one, please? I've got some things I need to take care of—"

"Like training?" Kuroo's grin widened and Natsume's eyes went wide, panic coloring her face when her feet began to leave the ground.

"K-Kuroo, come on now, don't tell me—"

"Sorry, kitten," Kuroo hoisted Natsume upwards, arm curled tight around her to keep her steady over his shoulder. "If you're supposed to be in bed, then bed's where you're gonna stay. Can't have you bleeding out on us again."

"No, that's not it!" Natsume protested, grabbing at his shoulders and trying to swat the back of his head. "Kuroo! C'mon, you're supposed to help me out here!"

"And let you have a date with death again?" Kuroo joked. Natsume paused at the throatiness of his words, softening up at the way his hand gripped her body a little tighter. "No thanks."

"I need to see Bo," Natsume said quietly, and Kuroo paused in his steps. "He... I know he was the one that found me, and he hasn't said anything since. I just... I just want to talk to him, you know?"

Kuroo's silence continued and Natsume's hand smoothed over his back, tracing invisible scars and she gripped the fabric of his shirt a little tighter. "Please?"

The sound of metal hitting the ground echoed in her ears, and Natsume squawked as she was heaved over Kuroo's shoulder, her feet touching the ground. A wide smile instantly split apart her lips, and the dry expression on Kuroo's face spoke volumes as he handed her the crutches.

"If you get in trouble it's not my fault."

"I think I can handle it."

"I'm not saving you from that gorilla."

"You wouldn't stand a chance anyway."

Kuroo's foot kicked her crutch and Natsume wobbled, sucking in a sharp breath as he flashed her a crooked grin, canine glinting in the light as his eyes peered down at her. "Don't push your luck, kitten. I'm only doing this for my bro."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Natsume's lips widened and she quickly turned, hobbling down the hallway. "I owe you one!"

"You know I'll collect~"

Natsume had been more concerned that she'd run into people she didn't need to see on her search for Bokuto, but finding the salt and pepper haired male was surprisingly easier than expected.

Probably life cutting me some slack. Natsume grinned at the thought, eyes zeroed in on the tall and muscled male walked only a few feet from her, half a piece of toast shoved between his lips and a fistful of papers in his hand. Her eyes brightened, glad to see he was at least still moving—though it wasn't as though this war waited for anyone anyway. "Bo!"

She watched Bokuto cough, choking on his piece of toast as his head whipped wildly around. She tapped her crutches on the ground and Bokuto whirled around, eyes growing comically wide as he hacked, the toast falling from his lips. "N-Natsume?"

"Bo!" Natsume hobbled forward with a little difficulty, but Bokuto met her the rest of the way in a few long strides. He stared down at her, eyes wide with disbelief and the corner of his mouth tugging upwards.

"What are you doing out of bed? You should be resting!" Bokuto's hands reached forward before halting midway. Natsume paused, watching as something flickered through his eyes and his hands fell to his sides. "You... You're still hurt, yeah? We should get you back. C'mon, I'll even carry you."

Bokuto made a move to scoop her up, but Natsume raised a crutch and pushed back at his stomach. Bokuto blinked, looking adorably confused as he remained a crutch length away from her. "Natsume?"

"You haven't visited me yet," Natsume said softly. "I'm hurt, Bo."

The corners of Bokuto's lips twitched, fiercely golden eyes meeting her gaze, and she took in the dark circles rimming the edges and the stress lines creased across his brow.

"I did," Bokuto grinned, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. "Well, as long as I could until Oiks threatened to throttle me."

"You could've taken him," Natsume pushed at him with her crutch a little harder and Bokuto's hand reached up to grab the end of her crutch, gripping it tightly.

"I just—"

"It wasn't your fault."

Bokuto halted, eyes snapping to meet Natsume's steady gaze. Not a single emotion was revealed behind her eyes as she continued to gaze at him, maroon irises warm and soft. "You saved me, Bo."

Bokuto's grip tightened on her crutch, knuckles turning white. "You shouldn't have needed to be saved."

"But I was stupid and needed help," Natsume set her crutch down and Bokuto let it fall to floor. Natsume took a hesitant step forward, reaching up as she shouldered her crutch beneath her and stretched her hand outwards.

Bokuto didn't move, usually bright eyes looking a little pained and hesitant. She smiled, her bandaged fingers curling around his cheek and a hand quickly shot up, gripping hers tightly.

"You're my hero, Bo," Natsume said softly, eyes impossibly warm. "Okay?"

Bokuto's lips pulled back as he ground his teeth. Small pricks of tears formed at the corner of his eyes and he nodded. "Okay."

"C'mon, don't be like Tooru," Natsume teased, gripping his hand back in response as she beamed up at him, Bokuto nodding gruffly. "You're no crybaby."

"Not crying," Bokuto rasped. "Just choked up."

Natsume felt her heart warmed at the idea that one of her comrades had cared deeply enough about her to feel so much. Her eyes dropped slightly, hating that it was her own stupidity and selfishness that had caused all of this. I have to work harder and make it up to them.

"Want to get some food?" Natsume proposed, and Bokuto instantly perked up beside her. "They always bring me porridge and I'm dying to have some meat—"

"Natsume?"

The breathless whisper of her name made Natsume freeze. All the blood drained from her face as she slowly turned over her shoulder, body beginning to tremble as Bokuto looked up as well.

Oikawa and Iwaizumi stood stock still at the end of the hallway. Iwaizumi's eyes were wide in surprise, quickly taking in the scene before him as understanding colored his features. Dirt smeared over his cheeks, dust and flecks of what looked to be dried blood cluttered his uniform. Natsume realized the two of them must have arrived home earlier than planned.

"Natsu-chan?" Natsume jolted, eyes locking with Oikawa's disbelieving irises as he began to take long strides forward. His gaze darted between Bokuto to her, and to the crutches and bandages and she saw his face contort into one of fierceness, reminding her of a gorilla as he stormed toward her.

Natsume balked, Bokuto opening his mouth to respond, but before Oikawa could even reach her, his hands stretching out to grab hold of her, Natsume acted.

A single crutch swung outwards, smacking straight into Oikawa's chest. The solider squawked, staggering backwards in surprise as he grasped the metal tool in his hands. Oikawa blinked once, momentarily halted while behind him Iwaizumi slapped his forehead. Natsume didn't waste a single moment, hobbling forward with her single crutch, eyes set on the door at the end hall and very well intending to barricade herself inside.

She only made it a few steps before her crutch was kicked out from under her and she let out a screech of surprise, arms flailing outwards until hands gripped her waist and whirled her around. Natsume's face paled when she came face to face with Oikawa, eyes wild and silken locks tousled from the mission.

"What are you doing out here?" Oikawa snarled, fingers digging tightly into her hips and she winced as he jerked her closer. "You're not supposed to be out of that room—you're not supposed to go anywhere!"

"I'm not under arrest, jesus," Natsume rolled her eyes, using a hand to shove at his chest but Oikawa didn't budge. "I was hurt. People heal, I'm not some cripple—"

"You're not healed," Oikawa snapped, fingers roughly shoving her hair back and Natsume hissed as he revealed the fresh bandages around her head. "Did you forget about this?"

"I'm fine!" Natsume shoved his hand aside and Oikawa snatched her hand into his, gripping it tightly. "I just wanted to get some fresh air and—"

"Then you could've waited for us," Oikawa began heatedly. "We're not letting you out of our sight ever again—"

"Tooru." Natsume snatched her hand back and Oikawa reached for it once more, but she brought it close to her chest. "You know that isn't how this works. It's trust in everyone and understanding that things like this are going to happen—"

"We let you out of our sight and look what happened," Oikawa practically sneered, snatching her hand roughly and gripping it tightly, fingers forcefully slipping through hers. "We're leaving you with no one but—"

"Oikawa, chill," a rough hand pulled Oikawa's shoulder back and Oikawa's eyes snapped to Bokuto, turning steely and intense as he narrowed his gaze. "Natsume's a part of this team, no one's going to let this happen again."

"That's rich," Oikawa snarled, fury lining his handsome features as he took a dangerous step forward and Bokuto's eyes narrowed. "Coming from you."

Before another word could be said, Natsume mindfully moved aside a bit so she could catch herself. Oikawa reached for her as she moved, only to stagger forward with a cry of surprise as Iwaizumi's hand came roughly down at the top of his head. Oikawa whirled around in disbelief, looking utterly betrayed as Iwaizumi merely flashed him a look of annoyance.

"Will you shut up, already? We need to head to the debriefing."

"But Iwa-chan—"'

"She's an adult, she knows what she's doing," Iwaizumi snapped, rolling his eyes as he added. "Most of the time."

"You can't be—"

"We'll be fine."

Oikawa's brows furrow and he looks as though he's about to protest further, lips curling back in the beginning of a snarl, but Iwaizumi wasted no time in delivering a swift smack to his head once more.

"Now let's go before you cause any more trouble, Shittykawa." Iwaizumi's hand roughly fisted the back of Oikawa's uniform and shoved him forward. Oikawa opened his mouth to protest, eyes flashing to Natsume's intently with a promise, and she shakily waved in response, figuring she could always just deal with the consequences later.

Iwaizumi's free hand shot out and he punched Bokuto's shoulder, not sparing the other captain a glance as he merely continued onward without another word.

"I'm trusting you next time."

"Iwa-chan's a pretty cool guy, huh?" Bokuto said finally, as he picked up Natsume's crutches and the two of them watched as the gorilla duo disappeared around the corner, Oikawa's loud protests still echoing.

"Yeah," Natsume agreed, adjusting her crutches as she added, "and handsome."

"Am I handsome too?"

"Nah, you're just cute."

"What about Oikawa?"

"He's a gorilla."

"But Natsume~" Bokuto whined, tugging at the corner of her shirt as Natsume began to hobble off and he kept even pace with her. "I want to be handsome to you too!"

"Mmm, maybe if you looked more like Terushima."

"What?"

"Or Akaashi?"

"N-Natsume!"

"C'mon, let's get something to eat, I'm starving."

Tip Number Ten: Communication is important, it's the only way to get our feelings across.

Oh my god I meant to update this and the other stories so much sooner but I've just been writing for them and not posting anything because I wasn't happy with the way they came out and blurgh but now it's a lil better and I'm going to update the others soon ;)

Thank you all for the support and for reading! Honestly makes all these hours writing worth it to know someone's enjoying the ride along with me and you guys are literally the best :)

For anyone interested, I've made an archive of our own account by the name of alkhale where I'm posting all my reader inserts, currently there's two rn and one's a Iwaizumi/reader/Oikawa omegaverse fic ;)

The amazing dinachuus-art found on tumblr has also done the amazing and did a fantastic piece of fan art for Natsume if any of you in interested in seeing!

Hope that those of you who celebrate had an amazing lunar new year!

Thanks for reading!

Marshmellow-

-OUT!