Chapter 8: The Second Fire
Pairings: GaaraXNeji, NarutoXSasuke
Previously on Witchwood
It wasn't long though, before several candles were lit throughout the house and he could hear people running and yelling. Sasuke jumped through the window and pulled Naruto over his shoulder securely before going back the way he came, only realizing then, how hard it was going to be to get down.
It was too risky.
Looking back at the door to the room, Sasuke did the only thing he could. He layed Naruto down on the desk sitting in the room and pulled the lamp from the shelves along the wall, quickly smashing it against the doorknob until that too broke off.
Then there was nothing left to do but run.
Grabbing Naruto, this time holding him tight against his chest, Sasuke ran like they'd die if he didn't get out that instant. Which was probably the truth. So instead of stopping when someone crossed his path, he ran into them and slammed them against walls before they could get their hands on him.
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From Gaara's point of view, everything was much worse off around the camp. Naruto's nearly empty basket had been found earlier that day when one of the game gathering gypsies had been out searching for food.
He'd proclaimed to have seen soldiers tie him up and run off with him.
The accusation and the empty basket as proof was all anyone seemed to need, and after that, people had just started loosing their minds. Thinking that they would be the next ones abducted.
Gaara had more right than any of the rest of them to be scared.
No one else except for Kakashi and Iruka had gone through something like this before. And Gaara was in no hurry to visit that memory again. With all of this going on, Gaara had completely forgotten about his childish fight with the long haired brunette. He'd forgotten almost everything except that he needed someone to talk to.
-The Second Fire-
Morning light shone through the windows the next morning as Neji pushed himself up to lean on his elbows. Everything was a blur at first, except that he felt rather warm and incredibly well rested. It took maybe two seconds more before he realized he wasn't alone in the bed he'd woken up in. And what a realization it was to see the redhead he'd been pining after sleeping peacefully next to him in the dress he'd had made for him.
It was the most beautiful sight he'd ever woken up to, and he wished more than anything that it could stay that way.
But for now he had to get up and dress as if nothing happened.
As if he couldn't feel the smile on his face get wider and the tingling in his veins. He wondered why he felt this way at first, possibly chalking it up to the fact that he'd just slept with a gypsy not a few hours previous. But the thought seemed a bit harsh, and didn't quite hit the feeling he was trying to describe to himself.
He let go of it for now and moved from the bed, slipping on a pair of dark colored uniform pants before moving into the small kitchen to make breakfast. There wasn't much, partly because he and Sasuke never ate at home, but Neji was determined to make something anyway. The result ended up being a plate of different fruits, cut into small bite sized pieces and slices of fresh bread he'd made the night before. A small jar of strawberry jam being added to the tray as he moved out of the kitchen.
Just in time to see the redhead start to wake up.
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Captain Faus woke the next morning in a rather rotten mood. He'd barely grasped the fact that Sasuke was running off blonde gypsies, before he was confronted with the idea that maybe even his star officer was lying to him. Neji had seemed so distracted since the day he'd given him the flowers at their morning meeting. And ever since, the boy had made himself scarce, running around town doing god only knew what, and it certainly wasn't what Faus would have considered the duties of an officer.
Running to a dress store and then a jewelry store was not what he should have been doing.
Moving out of the house and toward the church on the hill, Faus pulled one of the officers standing guard by the door, further out of earshot.
"I want you to go in there and bring them out."
"Sir?"
"They've been in there long enough."
"Of course sir, but where do you want them put?"
"I want them thrown into the dungeons for now. But when I give you word of it, I want the gallows prepared for a burning. That witch burns tonight, and we'll make the Uchiha watch since he seems to enjoy the blonde so much."
The man nodded, slightly frightened before turning away to whisper their orders to the other men.
The look on Faus's face was of pure malice as he moved out of the forest again and made his way down the streets of the town, toward a certain inn he knew the Hyuuga boy to be residing in.
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Gaara knew that he shouldn't have felt the way he did.
Soldiers were dangerous to be around and even more so to trust, but he just couldn't help himself. The minute he'd seen Neji walk into the room carrying a tray of food meant for him, he'd been smitten.
They were enemies, or they had and should still have been, but Gaara didn't care any longer.
All that morning he'd been given nothing but kindness and the attention only a new found lover could give, and he felt spoiled by it.
He'd done nothing but blush all the way through breakfast, then as Neji went to change and get ready, he'd tied shawls over his head after brushing his hair with the other man's brush, he'd tied longer green and purple shawls over the white of his new dress, the tassels at the ends contrasting nicely with the soft fabric of the skirts. All the while, he thought of nothing but Neji.
And it showed in the small smile he couldn't seem to move from his lips.
Neji didn't end up leaving for work though, as Gaara had expected him to.
Instead, he and Gaara were once again on the bed, the taller boy laying part way on top of the redhead as they kissed. It'd been soft at first, as if neither of them were certain about continuing. But now it was more purposeful, romantic even.
However believing it would stay that way was a mistake on Gaara's part.
The minute the two of them were relaxed, and Gaara was certain he'd had Neji pretty well distracted, the front door opened with a bang. And from previous knowledge of the man, Gaara knew that when Captain Faus stepped into the room with two others and spotted them, things were going to get very bad, very quickly.
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Kakashi was much more worried than he let on when Gaara disappeared. It was one thing to have one of the boy's you'd raised for years go missing, but Kakashi was Gaara's adopted father. The man loved the fiery redhead as he would have any of his own children, which was why the boy running off into town and not coming back made it difficult.
Iruka also seemed to be beside himself.
They had had no news of the blonde who'd disappeared earlier, and everyone was in a panic. Why wouldn't they be? First the disappearances, and now there messenger and scout had run back into the camp shouting about invasions with a long arrow sticking out of his chest.
Kakashi had set down the deer carcass he'd caught and immediately tried to come to some sense of what was happening. Dragging Tsunade out of her tent in time to see the man fall to the ground.
Not knowing the man well, didn't change things. Death was something Iruka would never be able to heal, and something that no gypsy wanted to experience until it was way passed their time to. So when Kakashi had to confirm the man dead and tell the rest of the gathered gypsies in the camp, there was a definite silence. One full of terror and tension.
Then the screaming came, people rushing everywhere, trying to get things together and run.
The silver haired hunter knew better than any of them.
This wasn't a warning that they could get out of. The soldiers were close, if not already surrounding them, and they had let the scout come back just to rile things up before they came to invade.
"Probably think this is funny, the bastards!"
Kakashi muttered to himself, grabbing hold of the now frantic brunette and holding him close. He backed them up against one of the outside of the wagons, making sure to stand in front of Iruka when the soldiers finally decided to breach the camp.
In due time they did, taking all those who went quietly with them, binding them with rope, and killing all those who screamed and tried to run or fight back.
Sadly, that left very few other than Lady Tsunade, Iruka, and himself still alive.
Now Kakashi was no longer worried about Naruto and Gaara. Instead he was thanking the gods that they were both gone and only hoping he could get them all out of this.
When everyone was rounded up however, they were dragged back to town and practically thrown into the center of town. Where the gallows sat waiting to be used. The silver haired man would have given anything to be hung in the gallows when he saw the changes being made, in the least, it would have been quick. But now the nooses had been removed and bales of straw had been placed around the podium. Some said that burning witches was a just and fitting way for their evil souls to be disposed of. Kakashi just said it was inhumane and barbaric, besides, the word witch was such a vague term.
Nothing would make it right though.
So they stood waiting, Iruka with tears streaming down his cheeks, Kakashi looking pale, and Lady Tsunade looking grim.
All of them waiting for what they thought would be their own executions. But what was in store for them was much worse.
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Naruto could barely keep his eyes open.
The minute he'd woken up, Sasuke had told him everything. Now ever since, he'd been far to tense to get any rest. Not only that, but they'd spent so long being caged up in the church that now the both of them were scared, starving, tired, and everything that no one ever wanted to be.
In Naruto's eyes, it had almost been a blessing the minute the doors of the church were kicked in.
It meant he would get to see daylight again, even if only for a moment.
Sasuke was his biggest concern though.
The boy had risked everything for him, his job, his life, his security. Everything. And Naruto had no way of repaying him other than doing his best to stick by his side. He had nothing but a dangerous future full of fire, illness and death to give the raven.
Sasuke never seemed to think the same though.
As the hours passed, he never once slept or ate. Instead he gave the little food he had to Naruto and watched the church like a hawk, constantly staying close to the blonde in case something went wrong.
It merely made Naruto even more anxious and guilty that he could do nothing himself.
So when the doors were kicked in and the two of them were taken, though not without a fight, Naruto would almost admit he was relieved. Almost.
Obviously this wouldn't lead to anything good.
And sure enough, he'd guessed correctly.
They were dragged unwillingly back to town where Naruto could see a few people from their camp standing off to one side of the square. Then Sasuke was taken from him and locked in the wooden restraints near the jail house. Hands and head in the shackles and locked with a key. A key Naruto knew now he'd never be able to retrieve.
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Gaara had done nothing but fight to get free of the man holding him. When Faus had entered Neji's room, things had become a blur of yelling and struggling. In the end, they had been over powered, and it was all Gaara's fault.
He'd been easily taken and held, but Neji had fought his best, knocking several soldiers unconscious before the evil man had pointed a gun to Gaara's head and told Neji to stand down. And Neji had done the most foolish thing of all then.
He'd obeyed.
Ever since, Neji had been bound and held by two soldiers, being nothing but quiet and defeated as they'd been lead through to the center of town.
Gaara was angry.
Neji could take all of them and get away without any trouble, but instead he had to be gallant and risk his life for Gaara's sake.
It was unnerving to see how such a strong man had been weakened.
By the love of a redheaded gypsy. Of all things.
Gaara fought and screamed the entire time, cursing like a sailor and kicking as hard as he could to get away from the evil man who had him bound and was carrying him. The only thing he got in return though was the barrel of a gun jammed into his temple as a warning. It honestly didn't have much affect. Gaara was beyond simple threats.
Nothing kept him from making as much fuss as possible, until he saw Naruto. His best friend, tied to the center of the gallows like some innocent women being accused of treason and bewitching people. If anything the blonde had been nothing but innocent of any crime and to see the boy in such a situation made Gaara seethe in anger.
It wasn't long then, until Gaara was relieved of his evil captor.
And he tried to make a break for it. Running exactly where he shouldn't have, straight to the gallows in hope of being some comfort to the crying blonde. It seemed to be the exact place the soldiers wanted him, because the minute he got there he was slammed down on to the ground by some other man, and while he was still recovering from the blow, was tied to the tall thick log as well.
This was not something he'd planned.
Nor had he planned the sudden torch that came into vision as Captain Faus came forward to set the straw on fire.
The flames were immediate.
They caught instantly and began to move upward, catching at the hems of Gaara's white dress, turning the material into a charred brown color. Gaara could hear Naruto start to cry even harder beside him as their bare feet were licked by the consuming flames moving still upward. Everything got hotter and louder as the flames leapt above their heads and started to consume more than just straw.
He could smell burning flesh and smoke, the heat making his brain register nothing but the heat and the pain.
Gaara could hear screams next to him.
But for once, he was silent.
Sorry it took so long for me to update this... I was being unmotivated...
But here it is... Chapter 8...
