(Authoress bangs head violently against table) OH MY GOD I'M SO SORRY FOR THIS LATE UPDATE!

PLEASE FORGIVE ME!! (Bows down and throws unspeakable amounts of money on reviewers)

I LOVE YOU ALL! Thanks for the reviews and adding my story to your favorites.

I hope you enjoy this chapter of The Demon In The Wishing Well!

Title: The Demon In The Wishing Well

Chapter: 8

Ch. Title: When The Sun Rises

Disclaimer: Nope don't own.

Legend:

"Talk"

'Think'

Flashback/Dream Sequence/Lyrics

I decided at last minute this chapter will mostly revolve around developing Ino and Shikamaru's relationship… Oh my… (Pauses, sweatdrops, and then Authoress decides to walk away.)


There was a small sigh of relief, and a tiny uplift of tension as the sun began to peek from behind the horizon and illuminate the brilliant blue sky. It seemed that the sun had managed to chase a miniscule amount of the girls' fear away, but still left them quite hopeless as to how they were to escape. Ino sat on her futon, biting her lip to an even brighter red color than they already were. Sakura lay on her futon, staring straight up at the beige ceiling of their quarters. Hinata sniffed as Tenten wrapped her arm around her shoulders, whispering quiet comforts in her ear.

"So…" Ino started, gritting her teeth slightly at the inability to say anything important.

"I'm not leaving from this room." Sakura deadpanned, not even hearing Ino's quiet voice.

"I d-don't want to e-either…." Hinata nodded, taking deep breaths to calm her aching chest, where she could still practically feel the sharp, rocky spikes piercing her once again… and she shuddered, curling under her blanket.

"We're going to have to sometime." Tenten reasoned, being what seemed, the only sane one thinking about food and water. They had a master bath suite in their room, but none of the three girls' were too concerned about anything like that.

"Could you go for all of us?" Ino muttered, glancing out the window at the sunshine.

"Nope." Tenten said easily, and Sakura grinned, giggling a little.

"I'll go then." Ino sighed, facing the girls with tired eyes.

"…Is there something wrong, Ino? You wouldn't usually act like this." Sakura noted, almost jokingly but had managed to fail pathetically at it.

"Well… Hinata isn't fit to leave this room, she'd probably fall, Sakura you're still in pain from last night, and Tenten doesn't want to go so…"

"I'll go, I was kidding!" Tenten protested, but Ino shook her head smiling pleasantly.

"Please, whose going to watch Forehead girl? She might hit her giant forehead against something and knock herself out!" Ino joked, and the room was filled with a slight, light laughter.

"I suppose you're right… But we should only get things when we desperately need them. I wouldn't want to meet up with anybody out there…" Sakura noted with an air of seriousness, and the others nodded.

"Well, what shall we do until then?" Hinata questioned, having calmed down and stopped stuttering.

"Make fun of Forehead girl." Ino said, her face so serious that the others could have sworn she wasn't joking if they didn't know her so well.

"Yeah right, making fun of your weight is more fun Ino-pig!" Sakura screeched at the ceiling, not even bothering to turn to Ino but still giving a little huff as she pouted to her companion, the ceiling.

The room was filled with laughter again, as the sun rose to shine brightly and cheerfully in the sky.


Only a few hours had passed, but at this point Sakura was groaning from the headache she was experiencing. Her limbs were sore, and ached every time she moved. Her stomach was empty, and her throat raspy.

"I'm so damn hungry…" Sakura managed to moan out.

"Let's move her into the bath, the warm water will be better for her…"

"We have to heat up the water first…" Hinata noted, rushing into the adjoining master suite. She began to make a small fire underneath the large stone bath, (1) and quickly lifted a string that was attached to a wooden plank that kept water back. She filled it to the brim, and the water began to heat as the fire began to light even brighter, licking and reaching out from the small area that Hinata had used to stuff the wooden logs settled next to the bath and light.

"It's ready!" She yelled out, and both Tenten and Ino gently helped Sakura up, who winced in pain at the feeling of her tired arms and legs moving. After stripping of her ripped kimono, that Ino had thrown carelessly into the corner to wash later, and settled Sakura into the warm bath. She sighed with relief, laying her head against the cool stone in contrast to the sweltering heat of the water. Steam rose from the bath, and there were slight vents at the top of the ceiling for the room to air out.

"I'm going to find something to eat for you, Forehead girl. Don't die while I'm gone." Ino joked, but there was a underlying fear that if she left, Sakura really would be gone.

"I'll be fine, Ino-pig. Just don't eat all my food on the way back!" Sakura grinned, and Tenten, Hinata and Ino shuffled back into the other room. Hinata collapsed on her bed, sighing as she began to fall asleep. Ino waved to Tenten, before peering out their room slightly.

"I'm off!" Ino mouthed, closing the door quietly behind her. She looked about, her ripped kimono swaying against her mid-thighs. She moved quietly around the halls, peering past corners as if she were on a mission. At least, a mission to find the kitchen!

Ino's sharp blue eyes glanced from place to place, as she sped along the wooden halls, past random empty guest rooms and other confusing things. She blinked, and she could have sworn she smelt something coming from her left. She was running when she could see a large open wall to the outside, the sway of large willow trees against a small lake, tall grasses surrounding it in their perfect mint shade. She gasped audibly, before shaking her head and turning back to the direction she had been running in.

"So where are you going?" She heard a voice from the grass come. Ino almost shrieked when she thought the grass was talking to her, only to see the familiar boy from the mansion's entrance sit up from the grass. He glanced at her lazily, eyeing her outfit. Ino suddenly felt exposed, as if he could see directly into her soul. He muttered under his breath, before standing up.

"So?" He asked again, staring at her.

"Uh…" Ino was freaking out mentally, thinking the boy would do something crazy and sporadic, like eat her head off or something. Shikamaru rolled his eyes at Ino, noting that she hadn't changed much since when they were kids.

"Just tell me where you're going, or is it that difficult?" Shikamaru deadpanned, and Ino turned a bright ruby color, gritting her teeth at him angrily.

"…The kitchen." She said, quite reluctantly. Shikamaru muttered his infamous line, and brushed past Ino, whom froze. She followed him after a few seconds, walking behind him cautiously. He stopped in front of a room abruptly, and Ino peered in. It was empty, she noticed, and Ino ran in, not giving much notice to Shikamaru. She was just glad she'd made it to the kitchen.

She dug around; looking for something Sakura would eat. She'd managed to pull a few vegetables and spices, some onigiri, and strawberries. Ino, not too skilled in the kitchen but decent enough to not blow it up, decided to create a small fire and try to make a soup with what she had. Ino turned to look at Shikamaru, irritated.

"Why are you here?" Ino asked rudely, huffing slightly as if she were a peacock, fluffing their feathers after they'd been insulted.

"…I live here." Shikamaru was watching Ino's movements, and Ino felt completely, and utterly exposed.

"Not in the kitchen." She said, her voice muffled, as she wasn't facing his direction.

Ino was done as quick as she'd started, it seemed, and filled a bowl with the soup, gathered up the strawberries and onigiri, and in a sort of awkward shuffle as she didn't want to spill anything, walked past Shikamaru, being careful to not touch him again. She ran this time, down and turning against the winding halls, surprised she wasn't spilling anything and at the same time not caring.


"I'm back!" Ino said, smiling cheerfully. "And I brought gifts."

Hinata giggled, as did Tenten. Sakura was settled in her now clean kimono, against the wall in her futon.

"Onigiri and strawberries, and soup?" Sakura quirked an eyebrow.

"Don't complain." Ino harrumphed, setting down the soup.

"The soup is for you, we get the onigiri and strawberries." Ino grinned, biting into an onigiri.

"I didn't know you could cook, Ino." Sakura muffled, as she chewed on the vegetables in her soup.

"And now you do." Ino shrugged nonchalantly, chewing quietly.

"So how'd you find the kitchen?" Tenten asked, confused. "We don't know the layout of this house at all, and you took barely any time to come back."

"Uh, I had help." Ino said, stuffing more food in her mouth.

"Who?" Tenten demanded.

"I don't remember his name!" (2) Ino laughed, and Tenten began to laugh quickly after. The onigiri was gone with a speed and the four realized how hungry they really were.

"I'll go get more onigiri, and strawberries. Maybe I'll find something else without an idiot watching me the entire time." Ino mumbled the last part to herself, while the others stared at her with peculiar expressions. Ino smiled and waved, sneaking out the door again.

She ran down the familiar path way again, her footsteps making quiet pads against the wood. When she turned the corner to the kitchen, she saw the boy standing outside of kitchen still, leaning against the wall.

"I thought you'd come back." He said, not bothering to look up.

Ino felt herself frown, "And how so?"

"I know you too well." Shikamaru said, almost sadly.

"What?" Ino looked incredulously at him, "I only know your name!"

He got up from against the wall effortlessly, almost as if the wind were lifting him. He walked over to Ino, gently grasping her wrist. Ino froze, but glared easily at Shikamaru.

"What are you doing?" She ordered, looking at Shikamaru's face.

"An experiment." He said easily, pulling Ino close. Ino gasped, as their bodies made contact, it was like small sparks of energy flared to life with every touch…


And here, I stop. Thanks for reading, and for sticking with this story! (Authoress gets teary)

I love you ALLLLL!!! (Shrieks loudly and breaks glass)

(1) Remember the time period…. (Sing song voice)

(2) She was lying. (Deadpans)

Thanks for reading! Review, please?

Sorry if this was a really bad update, I worked hard on it! And I loved ending this one too. Nothing really happened, I just… Yeah. Yeah. That's all I have to say. Lol!