The Shadows Within
She wakes in the heart of deepest night, her weary eyes fluttering. A lethargic breath tumbles past her lips and she sinks deeper into her pillows, savouring the warmth. Without looking, she knows her next shift is only hours away. She knows that she should rest. Instead, she slowly turns around to find a quivering mess.
He spends his nights in darkness. The same darkness she fought to save him. So she draws nearer, humming softly beneath her breath. Her hands seek out his face, moulding to the curves of his cheeks and the line of his jaw. Lovingly, she calls for him to wake.
In memories and nightmares, he struggles to distinguish sound. His fight lies with demons, with demonic visions, each possessing his face. He screams for the Sword of Kusanagi, at the gleam of its swift slash and the people fleeing from its path. He screams at these same faced fragments of times, of places, of vengeance as anguish invades his heart.
"Sasuke," she has been calling to him for a while now. "Sasuke."
Uncomfortably, he twists and turns, slowly rising from the depths. As he does, the nightmares fade, and consciousness takes him to the world. When at last he opens his eyes, he takes a breath for calm but the trembling in his hands goes on and on and on.
"Sasuke."
He turns, finding emerald eyes boring into his. Concern creases her forehead, softens her gaze. He opens his mouth to speak, but she acts first, drawing him closer. Her thumb traces the contours of his cheek as her lips brush against his brow.
She is cooler than he is. Her touch tingles his flesh but he leans into her. Grateful. His arm winds around her. They lie like that until his heart at last begins to calm, until the nightmares no longer leap at him from behind closed eyes, when he can breathe once more.
"S–"
"– Sh," she whispers, her lips brushing against him. "You don't have to say anything. It's all right. I'm here. And I'm not going anywhere."
A little of the tension goes from his body. He lets out a breath he hadn't realised that he'd been holding. The back of nightdress is loosed as his fist slowly relaxes.
He turns his head, leaning into the warmth of her palm and murmurs "thank you".
Author's Note: I dedicate this particular one-shot to Strayedwolf94. I hope that you enjoy it! I'm sorry if you don't. I can always try again. A great big thank you to everyone who reads this. Have a great day!