A/N: This is a drabble of an older Sakura "witnessing" a younger Sasuke. She sees him, not in real life, but in her mind's eye. She "sees" him and understands and hopes, that one day, he will see her too- standing beside him as she always vowed.
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters from Naruto, but Masashi Kishimoto does!
Title: His Choice; Her Resolve
.:;:.
The night is still young, black as ink, and untainted by the full moon hidden behind dark clouds. The visage the girl- a woman maybe - witnesses is a small, raven haired boy. Surrounding him is nothing but gravestones and the noises of his tears.
She wants to offer words so soft, but she wonders if comforting condolences are beyond the small boy now. Too far gone for words, he is broken. His eyes bleed red from tears.
She wants to offer an embrace in place of the words she can't say, not then, not now, but he is already hugging himself. Years of being alone grants him the ability to retreat from every embrace except his own.
At first, being alone isn't his choice, of that she is certain. As years pass, his resolve to control is born from the one choice that isn't his. Being unaccompanied isn't his desire, yet, he is still alone.
If he must be alone always, he reasons, might as well be by his own volition. Now loneliness is by choice. He allows nobody near himself.
His choice, his resolve, becomes her resolve. She would do anything for him, for this small, broken boy, but she won't hug him now. She respects his choice, understanding that he doesn't need her as she needs him to. He doesn't need her, or her kind words, or her comforting hugs. These things, her offerings, can't be his redemption. She can't be his, and yet, she isn't heartbroken for his rejection. No, not when she finally sees him. Not when she finally understands him after years of study.
She now sees through his acts, his motives, his words. She sees through his betrayal. She sees a small boy, no more than seven. A small boy, who is huddling within himself, crying for his inability to live past the night filled with murder.
She realizes the small boy needs a mother, a ghost. She is no mother nor is she a ghost. His present can't be his past, and so she watches the little boy inside of the man she loves mourn for who he really needs, who he can't ever have back. As her resolve, she will stay by his side always, despite the fact that part of his heart will remain in the past with someone irreplaceable.
Since her resolve is his resolve, she will not encroach on his hearts' yearning, and she will stay by his side until he finally sees her like she sees him. She will witness and accompany waiting for the day he realizes his resolve is her resolve, and he will thank her again like he did so many years ago. Except this time, in reciprocation, he will also stay by her side.