Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters.
Merry Christmas!
The Photo.
A blonde-haired boy of around fifteen ran round his flat looking for his shoes. He knew he had thrown them somewhere in the house, he just couldn't remember where. And he needed them because there was that stupid Shinobi Christmas Party that night and he was being forced to go. Actually he didn't mind going, but they, meaning Tsunade and Sakura, had asked him, meaning had threatened him, to wear 'formal clothes', meaning the stupid suit with fancy shoes and a dog collar, erm bow tie, which he had been made to buy two months before for some meeting he had had to go to while on a mission.
He'd lost the shoes, put the collar somewhere safe, a location he immediately forgot, and he still had to find them whilst having to do his hair. Apparently some thought it was messy. He disagreed of course.
He pulled his covers back, re-checked his cupboards in the kitchen, ran
back to his room to check his wardrobe, thought they might be in the bathroom and so went there to check, and he still didn't find them. He did find the collar though, worse-luck. He had been using it to keep his chopsticks together in one place. Finally he went back to his room, and thought of his bedside-table, which he remembered had a cupboard. He opened it, giving a yell as he found the shoes. He let the door slam, then immediately put out a hand to stop a frame from falling. He looked at the frame, and a sadness crept into his eyes as memories cam back to him.
He remembered the fun times they had had together, the laughs they had shared, the fights they had had only to make up later on. He remembered every mission they had had where they worked together, depended on each other, needed each other. He remembered the first time they had laid eyes on each other, both as new students at the academy and as new team-mates. He remembered, and it hurt. It hurt to see all he had had dissolve. It hurt to watch everything he had worked for fade away. It hurt to lose everything he had wanted in life. He held the frame.
A pink-haired girl rushed about her room, her hair half-done, her make-up not ready, her dress still hanging on her wardrobe door. Trust her mother to need her help as she was getting ready for the party. She had to get ready, make sure she had everything, check on Naruto to make sure the idiot was wearing the suit, including the bow tie and the shoes. She also had to make sure he did something with his hair, although she didn't think it would make a difference. She then had to get her and Naruto to Sai's house and make sure that git was ready, and get them all to the party in one piece. She knew Kakashi would be there; it's a good job those books were his favourite.
She finished her hair and make-up and started getting the dress on. A soft-red coloured dress which suited her fifteen year old self. No one had to know she was wearing shorts underneath just in case of an attack. Most female shinobi did anyway. She got dressed and looked in the mirror, deciding something was missing. Of course! The bracelet her friends had gotten her for her thirteenth birthday. She put it on, and went to take another look in the mirror, knocking into something along the way. She caught the frame before it hit the floor. She looked at it, and tears filled her eyes.
How she missed those days! The missions where they saved each other,
had fun and generally beat up Naruto. The training where they helped each other. The laughter, the tears, the smiles. She remembered everything hey had been through as a team. Her twelfth Christmas had been the best. Everyone had been there; all the teams and sensei's, friends and her two team-mates. Both had been there; Naruto acting his usual goofy self, her scolding him and him watching them, smirking. They had had fun then; They were a team, a friendship, a circle that couldn't be broken. Or so she had thought. She missed the old days, and wiped away a tear that had escaped and was running down her check. She held the frame carefully in her hands.
A boy of fifteen with black hair sat there, waiting, dressed up. Orochimaru wanted him to go with him to some party where quite a few of his acquaintances would be there. Kabuto had chosen his clothes for him. They looked good, even if they weren't what he usually wore. He sat there, waiting.
He didn't want to go to some idiotic social event. It would waste his time. Time he could spend training, becoming stronger. A knock sounded.
Kabuto walked in and handed him a flower for his button-hole and reminded him he couldn't sit and scowl at the event that night. It as expected of him to mingle with the guests, get acquainted with Orochimaru's contacts. Kabuto walked out, shoes tapping against the floor.
In a sudden fit of anger Sasuke threw a book against a cupboard, and a bag fell out. He scowled and went to put it back. As he picked it up, a frame fell out. He looked at it. The frame he had been about to leave in Konoha. Indeed he had left it, but in a sudden fit of lunacy, had gone back for it.
He looked at it, and a lump lodged in his throat. He tried to swallow, but couldn't. Forbidden memories came back to him. Meeting them for the first time, thinking them worthless, only to be surprised when he found out the potential residing within them. He remembered their missions where they had made him laugh, something no one else could do. He remembered how they had always saved each other. He remembered how one had tired to stop him leaving Konoha. He remembered how the other had run after him to stop him leaving for ever. They had wanted him there, something no one else had. They were the only two people who had made him feel welcome, happy, loved.
He realised with a jolt that he missed them. He missed their companionship. He missed their friendship. He missed them.
For the first time in two years, the three were connected for one small second as they each looked at the exact same star at the exact same time and whispered:
"Merry Christmas, my friends"