Bloody Mary

I hadn't been one for tricks, but if everyone else was going to do it, then I guess I could tag along. I never thought I'd end up in Sakura-san's bathroom, with her terrified, next to me, also next to Naruto. She clutched onto his arm, hiding her face. Ino was front and center, she wasn't showing her fear. This was all a test of bravery. I was never one to back out of a test of bravery. So I stood there, watching Ino as she chanted: "Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary." Everyone exchanged looks as Ino opened her eyes, nothing was happening. Ino started laughing, "It was all just folklore!" She exclaimed. I shook my head, looking down, and sighing. We were all packed into this room, just as Sasuke reached for the door handle, his hand was sliced, scratch marks from sharp fingernails. My eyes widened immensely. Ino gulped, then screamed as a blur rushed towards her and slit her throat expertly, the blood poured out of the gash and down the front of Ino, covering her shirt in a crimson mess. She made an almost gurgling noise, before she fell to the floor, then onto her face. Sakura screamed, which almost signaled she'd be next. Naruto grabbed her and pulled her to the side, and Bloody Mary went after Hinata. The ghostly figure scratched at Hinata's face before her eyes fell out of their sockets, hanging only by their chords. Her face was a mess, the muscle beneath the skin showing horrifyingly. Blood poured onto the floor, out of the holes in her face. A hand flew up to my mouth, and I stifled a gasp.

The blur went directly to Sasuke, he dodged her, he was skilled and expert, but he couldn't deal with a ghost, not in the tightly packed room. He moved to the left, hit the wall, and shook his head, trying to gather his thoughts. . A neat gash to the lower stomach region had his intestines falling out, making a disgusting 'plop' noise as it hit the linoleum. She also did something to his brain, because the crazy look in his eyes as they turned grey, and the way he dug his nails into his own skin wasn't normal Sasuke behavior. I retched, turning away from the horror, although it was all around. Sai's mouth was dropped into a perfect 'o.' A silent scream never got past his lips, because he was turned inside out from the neck down, his insides all hit the floor, every bone was visible, the muscle was stretched out sickly, everything in this room glistened with bright, crimson blood. I lifted an arm up, blocking the attacker with my forearm, earning me several scratches as I ran into Tenten, slamming her into the wall. "Lee!" She exclaimed, her brown eyes showing her fear clearly. I frowned, but looked over towards the action scene, "N-Neji!" Tenten stumbled forward, I tripped her, letting her hit the floor, as I winced. I knelt down next to her, and set her up. She shook her head and pushed me away.

"Tenten, stop!" I yell at her, she stands up, grabbing onto Temari's skirt and pulling herself up. Her brown eyes grow wide as I look away, unable to do anything, and not wanting to see. But I hear her scream and its enough. I open my eyes watching as Neji is decapitated, his head flies towards the bathtub, I feel myself go cold, knowing that he is dead. I grab Tenten by her sleeve and pull her roughly, letting a sharp object pin Temari to the wall, it was caught in her stomach, and she was still alive for the second, her bright teal eyes fading. The life running out of them. She struggled, moving to the left and right, with each sharp tug the object ripped the gash through the middle of her stomach, the object only ripping her in half, in the end, organs and blood strewn in complete disorder. I had moved, towards the ghostly shape of the Bloody Mary, I threw several punches towards her, missing her barely as she dodged them expertly. I jumped back, and held my arms in front of my face as she scratched my arms again, blood ran smoothly down my arms. Before I knew it, Choji and Kiba were in bits and pieces, their fate, I hadn't witnessed. I grabbed Tenten and pushed her back, blocking another blow to her. Blood was splattered up against the wall, from my fellow friends, and from me. I felt my grip on Tenten disappear and I searched frantically, only to find her on the floor, crying. I looked away from her towards the few still alive, Shikamaru's feet weren't on the ground and a carefully tied noose was around his neck. Naruto was in a protective stance in front of Sakura, somewhere inside I knew what was going to happen next as soon as he yelled at the Bloody Mary.

"You are a bitch." Naruto growled. I shook my head, sliding to the floor next to Tenten, trying to get her to stand. I looked up at Naruto to see him gasping for air as something invisible choked him. I stood back up and rushed at her again, unable to pin point her location but guessing. I hit into her, making her stumble. Naruto didn't move from his spot and his hands still scratched at something invisible around his neck. Sakura cried aloud, reaching out for him, before she froze suddenly, her emerald eyes huge, her arm outstretched towards a dying Naruto. I watched, for I couldn't look away, Sakura was burning, but the fire had started inside of her stomach and was now coming out of her body. I watched as she started to turn to ash. The Bloody Mary was nowhere in sight, but suddenly, once I looked away from the suffering Sakura, she was knelt next to Tenten. I flinched in surprise, before I slowly made my way over to her.

She had a pile of red curls on top of her head, they were arranged messily. Her blood red eyes had a cold hint to them and contained unfathomable life. They also contained a desperation that made me watch her, instead of protect Tenten, they held a desperation that I had to recognize. She was from my childhood, she had to be the same girl, well, now she was a woman. I couldn't believe it, but I wanted to. I looked around me at the dead bodies, wanting to strike her with everything I had, I looked back at her, wanting to embrace her for she was there. She was a happy girl, when I knew her, she would always try her hardest, to win love, to win a fight, to be the best. She would always depend on me, and even though she wasn't that close to me, she admired me immensely and even went as far as to calling me senpai. One day she was kidnapped and had never been found. Some say she left on her own free will. I knew that she had went, either which way, and she went to go win love.

"Why ya crying?" Her voice was almost heavenly. Tenten looked up, her brown eyes wide, she was utterly terrified. "Stop crying, he wasn't worth it." She grabbed Tenten by the cuff of her shirt and pulled her to a stand. "Now... What to do with you." I slowly stood up, the wall supporting my shaky legs. "Sit." She commanded, and I obeyed. Her face was stained with blood, along with her white gown. Her red eyes went away from me, going back to Tenten. "You've only made one huge mistake." She said sadly. Tenten wiped her tears.

Her eyes then widened, staring into the eyes of the mysterious woman before her. "I-I looked into your eyes." She closed her eyes, and I stood up, prepared to step in, to save Tenten. "Lee, no."

"Lee? If that's your name, then I suggest you sit back down." She barked. My eyes widened but I couldn't listen. I could hardly move, fear had set in, and the beauty of the woman holding Tenten was overwhelming. "Well, little girl, there's only one thing I can do now." She sighed, her attention back on Tenten. Tenten screamed, closing her eyes, and the Bloody Mary laughed. "I'm not... or... I don't know." She shook her head. "You don't have a last name." She said in a semi-daze. I narrowed my eyes. I was ready to attack her if she dared to hurt Tenten.

"N-No, I don't. Why is that of any importance?" Tenten asked, trying to be brave, trying to forget her position. The tone made the Bloody Mary narrow her eyes, glaring at Tenten. I pressed myself to the wall, feeling the sticky warmth of someone's blood seep through my clothes.

"Do you honestly think I go by 'Bloody Mary?'" She asked, looking over at me for a split second. "I have a name, but since you don't have a last name, that means you didn't have a family." Tenten's turn to glare. "I'll tell you my name, but I can't be having you tell everyone." She put a finger to her lips, thinking for a minute. "Call me Karin, and I'm going to say that you will be the only person in the world that will make it out alive." Karin said.

Tenten cocked her head confused, "W-What?"

"Leave. Don't come back." She pushed Tenten away. "But remember one thing, I know your pain, and you will end up like me." Tenten began to run out but looked at me, before she closed the door again. Karin's eyes didn't meet mine, she wouldn't allow it. "You. Have a different fate." She smiled at me softly. I didn't understand, I didn't know if I wanted to understand, somehow I was repulsed and attracted to her at the same time. She placed a hand on my shoulder. She leaned down, her lips next to my ear. "You get to choose, you can end up like the rest, or... you can come with me. I know you won't like it, but it isn't asking for much." My eyes widened, it was a simple choice, or a crazy choice.

I thought it over for a split second, the words rushed out before I could stop them, "I want to go with you." Karin finally allowed her eyes to meet mine and the almost crimson color was startling, but beautiful. I saw the life in them, they weren't a frozen, cold color, and it was a warm color. Her lips rested on my cheek and I felt myself go cold, I craved something like this from her when she was younger, when she was alive. I didn't care that she had killed my teammates, but I did care, I cared immensely so, but they were dead and that couldn't change. Karin walked over to the sink, pushing the bodies away, I followed her willingly, there was a perfect chance to run out the door, not look back, but I didn't accept it, I, instead, followed her. A ghostly veil seemed to cover her, but she didn't seem to notice it. She ran the warm water and rinsed the blood off her face, turning to me. She was remarkably pale, she reached out an elegant hand that sported a glove that ran up to her elbow. I expected it to be cold, maybe because the fact that she was a ghost, or perhaps the satin should've been cold, but I grabbed her hand tightly, and I felt the warmth of blood running underneath her skin. I knew I was being reckless, but something stirred in my chest at the mere sight of this woman, at the sound of her voice, at the look in her eyes. Nonetheless, I had one question: "Why me?"

Her hand wrapped around mine, her dark lashes framed her bright eyes as she examined me, then her eyes were on mine, searching. "Because the fire in your eyes is bright, because you don't deserve to die, because I saw the way you looked at me. Because I saw the way you love your friends, because you remind me of someone dear to me." She looked at the floor. It startled me to hear her say that, she had to be the girl from my past. With her free hand, she stroked my cheek, before gathering the hem of her dress and pulling it up past her knees, she climbed up onto the sink. Then started to go through the mirror, I was startled but I followed her with wide eyes. Once we had stepped through to a beautiful, but dark room. She shook her messy hair out of its restraints, it flowed down her back, ending mid-back. She released my hand and looked at me, "I'm going to go change, and you can too, over there." She pointed to a door, with her ungloved hand, before she turned around. I walked towards the door, opening it to discover a simple room, with one window, a closet, and a rug on the floor. I opened the closet, dressing myself into a white button up shirt and dark green dress pants. I ruffled my hair, scraping the blood off my hands before I walked out of the room. I found Karin sitting on the bed in the middle of the room, her hair was tied at the bottom, making it very loose. She was wearing the same white gown, but there were no detectable blood stains. Her eyes fell to a simple picture frame and she stared at it. I walked over to her, my legs had never been this shaky before, not even when I was in the middle of the bloodbath in the bathroom. I sat down next to her on the bed and I looked at the picture frame, there was a boy, a little younger than me I would've guessed. He looked remarkably like Sasuke, next to him stood two other boys, one with orange hair, the other with whitish hair, the latter held a child in his arms. My heart beat raced, 'was that her child?' "This was my team back when I was a ninja. Him," She pointed at the one that looked like Sasuke. " He broke my heart, broke my soul, and tore me apart. He was the person I left this village for, I followed him, I lived for him, and he turned me down. Suigetsu, the white haired one, he cheated on me with every other woman, isn't his child darling?" She asked, then shook her head, "Jugo, the other one, wasn't ever normal. I tried to help him, but he wasn't easy to fix." She said, then looked over at me, her eyes portrayed so much emotion, my heartbeat accelerated. One of her hands landed on my thigh, as she leaned towards me, resting her forehead against my shoulder. Her hand gripped my leg tightly, she was reliving her past, and she had to have been. After a couple moments, she lifted her head, only to press her forehead to mine, "I shouldn't make you stay here with me, it's cruel." She closed her eyes, and as I enjoyed the feeling of her close to me, she disappeared.

I shook my head, clearing my thoughts, "You killed my friends, my teammates, what did they do to you?" I gulped, closing my eyes. I didn't want an answer, I didn't want to know how cruel she was, and I wanted her to be the girl I was in love with before she left.

She had gotten up and sauntered over to the window. It was like a beautiful mosaic. Pretty blue colors were everywhere, along with greens, pinks, and purples. I cocked my head curiously at her. She turned to look at me. "I-I felt the need to, you chant to summon me, you get what you ask for. You should know the folklores. I just overtook the last Bloody Mary's position. I did what I had to do." She shook her head, her red hair falling over her shoulder, when she was younger, she had never wore it that long, and she couldn't stand it. "At midnight, you can leave, through this window, just step through." She said, wiping her hand across it. Instead of showing anything outside, it was like a mirror and reflected the image. I stood up and grabbed both of her hands, taking a giant leap of courage by doing this simple act. I remembered her how she was, this was both to please myself, and to be selfish for once.

"Karin, I don't wish to leave, if I cannot see you, I used to love you, you used to be the woman I wanted to stay with. I can't believe you would take my friends, my life away from me. What more do I have on the other side of that window? You have taken it all away, because of some folklore that is apparently a real story." I told her, running my thumb across her soft skin, I loved the feel of it. Her red eyes widened. She was speechless, the murderer was speechless because of a simple boy, a simple boy that had been her senpai, a simple boy that had loved her so many years ago. "You have taken many of my loved ones from me tonight, but having a kiss from you would make up for some of the sadness and sorrow. Kisses fix things." I moved closer to her, leaning my head down to push her chin up, I kissed her softly, with a passionate spark. Her lips were cold, then warm. She controlled herself, but I could feel the want and need in her part of the kiss. She had been lonely, she had been dying inside. Maybe I could fix that. I dropped her hands and my hands found her waist, and gathered fabric, gripping it tightly. Her hands grabbed the fabric at my chest. The hunger from both of us, the passion exchanged, it was all out of proportion, one of us would give more than the other and it was a fight of who would give the most. As I pulled back, I watched her, take in the moment for a minute then open her eyes, staring into mine with almost a horror but at the same time a beautiful loving look. The underlying horror was at my turn of fate. She had wanted me to be set free, she wanted me to live, and she had realized that I was the boy from her past, she also realized that she had ruined my life. The slump of depression hung over my head, ready to drop at any second.

She shook her head, turning away, "I want you to leave." I frowned, releasing her and stepping back, I heard the lying tone. I knew that it was a huge lie. "Lee, why'd you let this happen to me?" She cried, finally letting her ghostly tears slip through. My expression stayed completely still, I didn't let her see any of my emotions, I was a ninja, and I was trained in that special category.

"You ran away from the village, I didn't stop you, it was your own decision. I didn't want to stand in your way." I told her. She looked up, before swiftly disappearing through a door. I sighed and sat down on her bed, looking through the pictures next to the one of Sasuke, Suigetsu, and Jugo. One showed her with her adopted parents, I had known them well, and another one showed her in a pretty dress, she must've been five. The one that caught my eye was one of both of us. We were in a field of flowers, this was something I remembered vividly.

The sunlight danced off of Karin's red hair, making me smile, she looked so much more beautiful with a brilliant smile on her face. Her red eyes were looking deeply into mine, as she laid on the field, the daisies moved softly, whenever a soft, warm breeze hit them. Karin's dark eyelashes blocked out the sun from her eyes, so she could see me clearly, her glasses were being held by her 'mother.' Her legs were laid on top of mine. Her hand was playing with my fingers, while I held my blush steadily so it didn't flush completely. (oh, how unsteady hormones were at sixteen.) Her mom held a camera, ready to capture the perfect moment, although in my mind, this was the most perfect moment. Only one thing made it more perfect, her mother caught that moment too. Karin leaned up, onto her elbows, and moved a piece of my hair out of my eyes, making me flush darker. "Karin, what if I told you that I loved you?" I asked softly, my lips near the flesh at her neck.

Her eyes widened by a small amount, and she blushed. "S-Senpai! I guess I would have to say that I love you too, very much." She smiled, she had changed from when she first came here, but it wasn't a drastic change and it was for the best. She was much friendly and I could actually call her cute, now. She bit her lip, twirling a piece of my hair, her mom snapped the picture and we loved at her, then began laughing. It was seldom that we were caught having a 'moment.' She leaned forward after that, tugging her knees to her chest, and pressing her lips to my cheek. My whole face had turned a nice shade of red that rivaled Karin's hair color. "So, Lee-senpai, when are we going to train again? Huh? I think I should be trying harder." She had a certain fire in her eyes that was never quenched. She had matched me in hand-to-hand combat, but couldn't overcome me in speed. But the moment of her just sitting next to me, was beautiful. I craved these afternoons after long missions and tiresome training regimens.

Karin came back in the room, I quickly looked up, but she wasn't paying any attention to me, she was folding up a blanket, placing it into a basket that she had brought into the room, she then went into the area I changed in and took my clothes. She came back out and looked at me. "What?" She asked. She could clearly see that my depression slump was going heavier and that I was going to go under any second. She came over to me, the remains of her past relationship with me still hung in the air too, she surprised with her next sentence though, "Senpai, it's okay. I got you." She looked surprised as well, the Bloody Mary would never say something like that. She shook her head, but stayed in her position, on her hands and knees on the bed, her face inches from mine as she stroked my cheeks gently. I shook my head slowly, hanging it low, finally letting the dam burst. I let out my tears of frustration, I pushed her back. I didn't need her to just bring me more hurt. She had taken many of my friends away. I didn't want to see her right now. She got the point, although she was hurt. She got off the bed and took the basket into another room. I slammed my fists into the wall, frustrated,

Why was I weak back there?

Why didn't I kill her?

Why couldn't I stop her?

I could hear her trying to hum above my cries of defeat and anguish and of total depression. The loneliness pressed down tightly over me, I didn't even know a feeling like this existed. I slammed back into the bed, closing my eyes, pressing my palms to my eyes, pushing back the tears. I knew what I would do now, I didn't know if I could do it, but I would do it, for myself, for my dead comrades, and for Karin. So I got up, walked to the door she went through and knocked on it. She didn't open it, but pushed her heel up against it, it was an old sign saying that I could enter. I opened the door and stood there for a moment, before grabbing Karin's hand and pulling her into the bedroom again. I pulled her into my arms and kissed her hard, passionately, with all the emotion that I used to hold for her, with all the emotion I still held. She kissed me back, but was unsure. I held the kunai against her back so that she couldn't feel it, finally, with one sure movement, I stuck it in. It pierced her heart and the noise that came out of her mouth almost tore my heart in two. She coughed up blood instantly, dying more quickly than she probably thought, but more slowly than I had wished. "S-Senpai... T-Thank you." She coughed up blood, splattering my clothes, I took her over to the bed and laid her down. She was even beautiful in death. The red stain on her white dress stood out horrifyingly, making my stomach turn. I pressed my lips to her forehead, knowing that I had set her free from this prison, knowing I had avenged my friend's death, and knowing that I could go back to Tenten and somehow help her through this.

The remnants of a memory hung in his mind, replayed, and made him almost hit the wall again: "S-Senpai! I guess I would have to say that I love you too, very much." My heartbeat increased as I realized something, it alarmed me, and made my skin crawl. I hadn't thought my plan through. If Karin was alive and not a ghost, and she had been trapped inside this mirror, then she was only now a ghost. She stood next to me, making me jump in surprise. Her voice no longer held the heavenly sound that it used to. Her voice sounded hollow, "It didn't work." Her hand touched mine and I felt my skin go icy cold, her heart was no longer beating, she was one of the living dead, chained to this earth by... by what?

The mirror. Or the window in her case.

His heart was beating rapidly, and he pulled his fist up, clenching it tightly. Karin bit her lip, she was almost transparent. Her eyes, no longer moved, they were frozen and cold. He shook his head, this would not only end her, it would trap him. He would find some way to leave, it was all a matter of time, but his first priority was ending her torture. She needed to be set free from this prison. With all my strength, I pulled my fist all the way back, and hit the window hard. It became to crack, even shattering in some places. Karin's eyes widened, she had messed her past up and she knew that if she was going down, she wasn't going to go alone. She grabbed my forearms, I watched in horror as her soul was being tore out of her ghostly figure. It was leaving her, killing her. Will what little strength she had left, she said, "You need not suffer, there is no life after true death. This will be both of our true deaths, although you'll never truly die until you are forgotten by the village." She managed before her soul vanished out of her body, her eyes rolled, exposing only white, and she became limp, although her soul was only as powerful as the woman that Karin had once been. My soul was being ripped from myself, it was a simple feeling, but something that made your insides shudder... then...

The pain was over.

((Edited, of course, my beta pointed out many flaws, so I rewrote most of it, I may add more if I dream more to it, or if it comes to me.))