"Mama," the little raven-haired child mumbled anxiously as she buried her face in the folds of her mother's nightgown.

It was dark in the house, and the windows were cracked to let in the cool, crisp night air. Crickets and cicadas crooned softly in the distance.

"What is it, sweetheart...?" her mother cooed as she gently pried the little girl from her skirt. Hinata knew her child was thoughtful and kind, but rarely was she very shy, especially towards her. Yet at the moment, Himawari had her eyes lowered bashfully and clenched her mother's hand with her own tiny ones.

"Who's that?"

Hinata looked over her shoulder, following her daughter's gaze in the dimly lit Hyuga compound.

He appeared almost a ghost at the end of the hallway with the moonlight flooding in through the window, illuminating his pearly white skin. The wood flooring didn't moan or creak under his feet when he began to slowly approach her. Turning to face the intruder, she instinctively pulled Himawari behind her, senses heightened at his perceived threat.

"Wh-who are you?" she asked, voice wavering slightly. Pulling her daughter closer, Hinata hardened her tone and activated her Byakugan when he didn't answer, "S-stay back!"

Hinata was puzzled to find that his chakra was undetectable, rendering her unable to determine his identity; she had never before heard of a ninja capable of concealing his chakra. At fifteen paces, she accepted that a fight was inevitable; she couldn't back down even though she was at a disadvantage, for Himawari's sake.

But before she knew what was happening, the naïve, blue-eyed little girl was standing before the stranger. He stopped his steady approach and examined her, and Hinata detected the faintest twitch of a smile on his lips. Her blood boiled to see this would-be kidnapper eye her daughter like that, but before she could leap between them like a fierce lioness protecting her cub, her daughter uttered a single word that made her body suddenly turn cold.

"Uncle,"

Hinata stared, stunned, as her daughter raised her arms up to the man in a silent request to be held; the now clear form of Neji Hyuga gently took Himawari into his arms. It was a simultaneously poignant and haunting; goosebumps rose on her bare arms as she saw him shield her from the Ten-Tails' attack, watched him collapse onto Naruto, smiling faintly at her as the life left his eyes…

She swallowed the lump forming in her throat, mouth dry and eyes wet. She hoped to herself that this was real, yet was terrified that it somehow would be. But that was impossible.

"This is a dream; you know," he stated softly. She looked into his eyes—eyes so much like her own—and found tranquility reflected in his soft smile. Her heart swelled when he glanced back at Himawari, his entire being seemingly lifted. "She reminds me of you," he added.

"She—" Her voice broke, forcing her to start again. "She's so smart—they both are—it reminds me of you…"

"You mean smart like you, Hinata." Neji's tone was both gentle and curt, and he even cracked a sly grin as he added, "They didn't get it from Naruto."

She smiled at the quip, yet at the same time she felt as if there was a kunai knife lodged in her heart and someone had suddenly twisted it. Her heart had fluttered when Neji said her name in his old, stern-but-caring way but it quickly sunk like a stone at the mention of her husband. This strange sensation was bitter, sweet, and sour all at once. She felt warmth, sorrow, and… was it guilt?

Indeed, Hinata had felt an immense guilt all those years ago, as if she were responsible for his death, but this time was different. She felt as if she had personally betrayed him; seeing him holding Himawari, standing in their old home felt, in a strange way, natural.

It felt like what could have been, if not for…

Swallowing these dangerous thoughts—after all, this was just a dream, and Neji was…—she took another look at him. It had been more than ten years, but he hadn't aged a day. His hair hung loose and long, like it had been in his last moments, and in all other respects he appeared exactly the same. However, something had changed about him that she couldn't put her finger on. Light, positive energy radiated from him like she'd never felt before…

Perhaps it was just her own imagination—"this is a dream; you know,"—trying to comfort her.

It wasn't until he stepped back into the direct light of the moonbeams filtering into the room that she realized: his forehead was bare. Hinata finally let go of the emotion that had been building in her chest as well as in her eyes. Apparently understanding, Neji let Himawari down, who, rubbing her eyes, stumbled back to bed to her mother's childhood room.

"Please don't, Hinata," he implored tenderly, tucking her hair behind her ear and cupping her cheek in his hand for just a second too long. She tried to contain herself, sniffling, as she cast her eyes downward; there was that guilty pang again.

"I know I shouldn't have come, but I needed to see you." he confessed, expression faltering at her apparent rejection of his affection.

There was a short pause, the silence between them broken seconds later by a soft, gasping sob. Neji lowered his own gaze before continuing, "I never got the chance to thank you. It was an honor being your comrade… and even more to have been your friend. I apologize if I caused you any distress, Hinata. Please tell little Himawari thank you for the flowers for me,"

"N-Neji, please don't go… Not yet," she mumbled, wiping her cheeks hastily before hesitantly, gently, bashfully taking his hand. Maybe if she held onto him, she could hang onto this dream for a little while longer, too. She felt him squeeze her hand and their eyes met. "I never got the chance to thank you, either… For saving Naruto,"

His earnest eyes replied silently, "It was never about him," and she knew. They both understood what she had really meant.

Hinata had to force herself to break away from his ardent gaze, feeling her insides beginning to melt. Neji had been one of her closest companions, and probably the person that knew her best. She had never thought of him this way before, but she never had the chance. She was still so young when she lost him; would she still have chosen Naruto had Neji not given his life for her?

Before she took that train of thought too far, her conscience reminded her that her child was sleeping unknowingly in the next room. How could she have such thoughts about anyone besides the father of her child? It had somehow felt right, however, when she saw him lift Himawari up onto his hip with adoration for the child in his eyes. Had he always been that handsome? Her face burned with shame as the word bounced around in her mind: adulterous. Surely all of this was less incriminating than she was taking it for; and after all, it wasn't real.

Unfortunately, that didn't make her feelings any less real.

Neji, sensing that he came on too strong, reined in his own emotions and squeezed her hand reassuringly. "I'm sorry, Hinata."

"Me too."

She saw him flinch at her response before realizing the ambiguity of the phrase. "N-no, that isn't what I meant. What I meant was…"

Hinata's voice trailed off, but he understood: "Never apologize for my sacrifice, and promise me you'll never feel guilty about it again, either." She nodded, pressing her trembling lips together to try to hold back another wave of tears. Neji continued as she held fast to his hand, "There is no one I would rather die for, Hinata."

Hot tears fell onto the wooden floor between them like two streams merging into a single, rapid river: crying for themselves, each other, and what could have been. Neji's fingers interlocked with hers and he gently pressed his forehead to hers. Neji couldn't bring himself to say goodbye, but she already knew.

"Thank you," he said finally, quietly, in the tone of "I love you."

Hinata awoke to a pale dawn and the chirping of birds outside her window. Her cheeks were damp and her hands were tangled up in her sheets, releasing her fists when she realized she had been clutching to them for dear life. Biting her bottom lip, she let herself cry a few minutes more, silently so as not to wake her husband.

All of a sudden, at breakfast later that morning, Himawari mumbled between bites, "Uncle Neji was in my dream."

Naruto and Boruto had already left for the day. Trying to push last night's dream from her mind, Hinata set down her own teacup and encouraged her to continue: "Oh?"

"Yeah, he told me how much he missed you and Papa, and that he's sure I'll be a great ninja one day. I want to make him proud, Mama!"

"Me too," Hinata said, smiling.

Thank you so much for reading! It's been a while since I wrote these characters, but I'm happy with how it turned out. ;u; Please let me know what you think in the comments!