I still don't own Naruto, or any characters. As always, reviews are welcome.

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Mae pondered over a scroll, trying her hardest to memorize the constellations that it showed.

A shadow fell across the stars' drawings, and she looked up into her younger brother's face.

"Come play tag with us, oneesan!!"

She sighed. There was going to be a quiz on this information tomorrow. How could she afford to spend time with a bunch of little kids? But... it was such a nice spring day, and she hadn't spent a lot of time with Hiroku lately...

"Please?" He begged.

Mae glanced back down at the scroll, and then rolled it up. It could wait.

A grin broke across Hiroku's face as she got up. "You're it!!" He yelled and darted away.

She laughed and ran after her brother's nearest friend.

To be from schoolwork, from all thought, and just running, was pure bliss.

She smiled as she watched one of the kids scream in mock fear and run from the person she had just tagged, but her joy quickly exchanged itself for confusion.

Maybe she had imagined it. But, no, there it was again... footsteps. They echoed, drowning out all other noises.

The air became cold and she realized that she was shivering.

A hand grabbed Mae roughly, pulling her to a standing position.

"Have a nice dream?" A voice sneered at her.

She groaned, trying to stay in the park.

The hand shook her, forcing her to open her eyes and face reality.

She was being pulled out of her cell by the guard that had woken her up. She knew where they going.

The person who took her there changed, but never the place. She had been dragged there every day for... how long had she been here? It felt like years, but she knew that it couldn't have been a month yet.

The door opened.

The guard took out the gag in her mouth that stopped her from biting her tongue off.

She heard the dull thud of the door as it closed, trapping her inside.

A new voice now, a colder one.

"Where is Hinata?"

Always the same question.

She didn't reply.

When she first came here, she told the truth. She hadn't helped Lady Hinata escape. She had no idea where she was right now.

But it hadn't mattered. No matter what she said, they would believe what they wanted.

" Bachi is in pain... but it could stop if you just told us where she was... Is a little girl really more important than your friend...?"

This was not new either, but it never failed to put tears in her eyes. It was cruel that he was being punished as well. All he had done was leave her by herself when she was supposed to get Hinata's finger.

Lady Hinata... even though it was her fault that she was being put through this torture, she could not help but pity her. All alone, in freezing weather.

No one would be looking for her in Sunagakure. That was the reason they had taken her here in the first place, and Mae had no doubt that it would become her grave.

"Where is Hinata?" Yoku hissed at her again.

She shook her head slowly.

"You won't tell? Very well, we shall see how well you do with half the amount of food you are given now." Her boss turned from her, gesturing for the guard to remove her from his presence.

Back to the cold, uncaring cell. She stared up at the ceiling bleakly, knowing that if she shut her eyes now, she would just be woken again in a few minutes.

If only death would hurry up and find her.