Ya I've been gone awhile – sorry. I'm really sick right now but I hope this is still good. It's really fluffy and possibly OOC but I think it's cute so ya…lol I will admit I cried while writing this haha I don't own anything except the twins, Kakashi's mum, and Shinju…and blah blah you know how it goes.
Very quickly Sakura decided she liked Kakashi's mother. She might have been overbearing but she seemed exceedingly kind and gentle. The woman quickly gave her a cup of tea and sent Kakashi to take a look at a shed that needed to be fixed.
"Tell me about yourself Sakura-chan. You're a lot younger than I expected; twenty at most."
She almost choked on her mouthful of the hot liquid. "But how could you – "
"You ninja aren't the only ones who can use jutsus."
Sakura smiled nervously. "Well I'm training to be a medic-nin under Tsunade-sama. I was born and raised in Konoha. And um… I am younger than Kakashi. That's pretty much everything interesting about me."
"I see," the old lady looked displeased. "I was hoping for someone with a little more personality but beggars can't be chooses."
"I have plenty of personality thank you."
"That's more like it. Show some passion every once and awhile. It won't kill you. Now how much do you know about my son?"
"Is this some kind of interrogation?"
"Yes, now I'm the one asking the questions," she smiled widely, clearly enjoying herself.
"Let's see…his father committed suicide when he was young and you raised him yourself. At one point he also tried to kill himself but was saved by his teammate Rin. He has a past with my aunt, Shinju, although I don't know what that is."
"He told you about her?"
"We were staying with her and they let a few things slip when they were going at each other's throats."
"I'm not surprised. When Kakashi's father was still around he had a very good friend in the Village Hidden in the Mist. The two of them arranged a marriage between Kakashi and the friend's newborn daughter. So when she was sixteen, him and I traveled to meet her. I didn't have the heart to break of the agreement even though I disagreed and his father was dead. She fell for him instantly but I could tell he was hesitant; he always was stubborn. In the end he couldn't bring himself to do it. They've been bitter about it since."
"He didn't…he didn't love her?" Sakura knew she shouldn't be so happy about Kakashi's suffering but she couldn't help it. He had not chosen her aunt.
"Mother what are you telling her now? You'll scare her away. No Sakura, I did not love her."
Kakashi was leaning in the doorway, looking tired and exasperated. "There's nothing wrong with your shed, you just sent me there to grill her didn't you?"
His mother instantly went to looking like the kindest, most innocent, old lady in the world. "Not broken you say? Must have been my imagination."
"I'm sure it was."
"How long do you plan on staying Kakashi?" Judging by how she was looking at her son, Sakura got the impression that he didn't visit often.
"For a few days if that's alright," Sakura answered for him.
"Of course! Stay as long as you like. You can have his old room. The bed's still there and I'm sure I have a cot tucked away somewhere."
A heavy hand fell on her shoulder. "Do you mind going to bed a little early? I want to talk to my mother for a bit."
She looked outside and found to her surprise that it was already dark. "I understand," he helped her up and showed her to their room. She looked around and realized that the shelves were covered with a layer of dust, as if nothing had been touch since the day Kakashi moved out. She got into her pajamas and lay down to sleep but found it impossible. She kept thinking about what they must be saying about her. In the end she sat by the door and listened.
"You can't keep doing this," the once kind voice was bitter and harsh.
"I'm not running away again. I just have to go into work a while and I can't take Sakura with me in her condition."
"What about her parents? I can tell she's younger than you are by quiet a lot. She can't be old enough for her parents to be dead. She might even have a sibling or two."
"Her brother has been dead and her parents…" he faltered and Sakura found herself clinging to every word. She couldn't understand what they were talking about.
"Her parents aren't around if you know what I mean."
"Poor girl. More reason for you to stay with her!"
"I am staying with her!" There was a pause and she knew they were listening. He lowered his voice. "I can't help what is best for her. I can only make sure she gets it."
A chair scrapped against the ground but Sakura didn't move. The door bumped into her back and she looked up at him in utter horror.
"Are you leaving me?"
He stood there for a second, staring right back at her. "Sakura…" He seemed tortured but she didn't care. She was on her feet so quickly he had to catch her otherwise she would have fallen.
"Why are you doing this? I gave you the chance to leave months ago. Why now?"
Tears were running into her mouth but she didn't bother to wipe them away. They were blinding but she didn't want to see him. She felt like he had just ripped her heart out and laid it before her. She heard him kick the door shut with his foot as he took her shoulders, wiping away the tears.
"Because they are looking for me Sakura. They want me arrested and if I confess you'll be the victim here. Everyone will feel sorry for the three of you and shun me instead."
Her blood seemed to freeze in her veins.
'They want you arrested?"
Sakura had the feeling that she was the pilot of a plane that was nose-diving, spiraling out of control to its doom.
"Hey, it's all going to be ok. Mom says you can stay with her until you're ready to go back to Konoha."
"Do you really think I'm giving you up that easily? I don't want to stay with your mom! I want to stay with you!"
"As much as I would like that a cell is not the place to be raising kids," he was trying to make light of the situation but failing miserably.
"We've been fine so far. We could start over somewhere or-"
"I'm not running from this Sakura. I know you heard my mother talking and what she said was true. I've been running my entire life. For once I would like to face a problem head on. I'd do it for you. I'd do anything for you."
"I have never seen you run! Did you run away when we fought Zabuza or any other time that you protected us? When everything happened with Sasuke you tried to help him the best you could!"
"Listen to me. There are different ways of running away Sakura. What happened with Sasuke…he reminds me of how I was when I was little. I had it in my head that if I could stop him I might be able to forgive myself a little."
"What could you possibly have to forgive yourself of? You're not who you think you are Kakashi!"
Before she knew what was happening his fingers were digging into her in a way that horribly reminded her of her dad. She thought she had seen him angry before but what she was seeing at the moment was pure hatred. Whatever he had done, he truly hated himself for it.
"I let my best friend die! I tried to desert my teammate after she saved my life because she was captured! Tell me that does not make me the worst kind of man!"
"Let go of me!" She jerked away, breaking the contact between them. Both were shaking. Him with fury, her with fright. There was a few seconds of heavy silence between them before he turned away.
"I'm sorry…that was uncalled for…"
"You've got that right," she was angry but in control. "You're confusing the past with your present. If we are who we were when we were young then I am a scared, weak, pitiful, little girl who dreams of being a ballerina. It's how we deal with things that makes us who we are. From what I can tell you're just the kind of person who blames himself for everything; letting all the emotions boil inside until it destroys you. You're not running. You're just dealing with pain in your own way…"
She watched him mull it all over before he slowly turned around and opened his arms to her. She hugged him as best she could, trying to lock it all in her memory.
"You're not the person I met years ago Sakura."
"Neither are you."
"I still have to do this. You'll need Tsunade because of the risks. You know twins are rare and the death rate is so high…I won't trust anyone but her with you."
She smiled into his shirt, trying not to think about they day that might be her own death.
"I can go back without you turning yourself in you know."
"No you can't. They would hold you and interrogate you about my whereabouts. I've been thinking about it for a bit now and this is truly the only way that you can have the best life."
"When will you leave?"
"I don't know yet. Soon."
"Soon…." The word had never seemed so ominous. "Not tonight!" She clutched him harder as if she could root him to the floor.
"No, not tonight. Tonight I just want to hold you."
They stayed that way for what felt like seconds. The clock was ticking on her time left with him.
"Kakashi, I'm scared."
"Me too Sakura. Come on, let's go to bed."
She let him lead her over to the small bed. He refused a cot and in the end they contented with him dangling precariously off the edge so she could have more room. On any other day she would have joked with him, saying how she would wake up in the morning to find him on the floor. They didn't speak but laid awake for hours, listening to each other's heartbeats. She had a fitful night. She repeatedly dreamt of shadows surrounding them, grabbing Kakashi and dragging them apart. No matter how hard she begged and pleaded they wouldn't give him back and he quickly faded into nothing.
She woke up with a jolt. It was early morning, the sun just beginning to rise. She reached for his hand only to find it gone. He wasn't there. For a fleeting second she thought that the shadows really had taken him but she quickly shook the thought away. She jumped to her feet not even bothering with her shoes. She ran out into a cold fog. Briefly she had a glimpse of the gates and began running as fast as she dared in that direction. The spiraling clouds were disorienting and more than once she thought she saw movement within them. Thoughts were running wildly through her head and although she was breathless she wouldn't allow herself to rest for more than a few seconds. The idea that she was too late, that he had left late last night, kept her moving. After what felt like forever she came to an abrupt clearing.
They were taking him away.
His hands were tied tightly behind his back and he wasn't fighting. His shoulders were hunched in and his chin rested against his chest in submission. She knew the two ninja leading him away; one up front and one in back. Both Anko and Iruka's mouths were drawn into thin line, eyes steely and unfeeling. They had hardened their hearts to arrest what they took to be a friend and coworker.
Sakura ran towards them, an animalistic screech vibrating off the trees surrounding them. All three looked up in alarm but it wasn't until her throat began to ache did she realize she was making the noise. She didn't have a plan but kept on running. She might have been forewarned for what was happening but she wasn't going to sit still and watch it happen. Strong hands held her back, wrapping around her chest so she couldn't move her arms. She tried to throw her attacker off, bucking and thrashing to no avail. Desperately she wished she had a kunai. Didn't they care they were taking away a father? She needed him in every way imaginable but they made no move to return him and save her. She felt like they were calmly taking away her life, leaving her for dead.
"KAKASHI!" Her screams tore through her heart. "LET HIM GO!"
He looked up, giving her a sad smile. "You'll be alright Sakura."
"NO I WON'T!" She managed to free an arm but felt her muscles go limp as something sharp and cold pricked her neck.
"I've got you Sakura. Calm down before you hurt yourself," ordered a voice she hadn't heard in months. With renewed vigor she bent her head to the arm restraining her and bit until she tasted blood.
"I'll never forgive you for this Tsunade," she managed to growl before everything turned black. Her last thought was that her heart was shriveling up and dying within her.
As he watched the medicine take affect it took all Kakashi's self-control to not run to her. Her screams echoed in his mind even though he knew the clearing had been left with an eerie silence. He was causing her to suffer, causing her pain. He had the impression the he had dealt the final blow to her already aching heart. In the end he couldn't take it. Iruka quickly had him by his ropes, pulling him back and away from his beloved.
"You'll never believe me but I do love her. Can I at least say goodbye?"
His question was ignored completely but he did find his friend giving him a disappointed and hurt look.
"There is a difference between lust and love."
"Iruka if I didn't love her then why do I feel like this is a death march? If I couldn't have her I would be begging for you to kill me right now."
"I don't know. Don't expect me to understand the mind of a pedophile."
"Will both of you shut the hell up?" Anko's voice was hard but Kakashi noticed her blinking back tears.
They fell quiet and walked into the town, Sakura and Tsunade walking on to the Hokage Tower, Iruka leaving to help carry her. If anything Kakashi was happy that his last look of her was one of fake peace. In his mind he could trick himself into believing that she was sleeping and for a few moments mute the screams he knew would haunt him the rest of his life.
