Stone-cold and Sober
A tale of desire, desperation, blossoming romance, and the incestuous blood within the Hyuuga clan
Chapter IX:
Protect Me, Neji
Shikamaru felt awkward. Holding Neji wasn't something he did frequently, but much less frequently-occurring was the situation at hand: the birth of a child into the Hyuuga clan. The Nara felt both blessed and cursed to be witnessing such an event - something normally kept within clan boundaries was being shared so willingly with him, but listening to Hinata's screams and moans made him cringe. Kami, why did childbirth have to be so painful?
Neji's shoulders trembled under the Chuunin's thin fingers. Shikamaru knew the lesser Hyuuga was blaming himself, cursing himself for his cousin's agony. He gingerly patted the Jounin's shoulders, trying to swallow the rising feeling of discomfort in his throat; he hated not knowing what to do.
Tears stung in the corners of Neji's eyes. Hinata gave a loud wail in the room behind him; he flinched and bowed his head lower, wanting to vanish into the floorboards of the Hyuuga compound. His cousin was suffering through the birth of his child, the one reason they had been bound together for so long…
Dark thoughts rampaged through the Jounin's mind as his cousin yelped loudly, causing his heart to flutter beneath his ribs like a bird locked in a cage. Damn, would this torment ever end?
Neji wept.
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Hinata screamed. In the hallway, the caged bird's soul cracked under the weight of his concern. He was pacing, as he had been for the last three hours; in the back of his mind, he pondered if the floor would collapse beneath him due to its worn state. A low moan shook the vases within the Hyuuga princess's room; the Jounin without dug his nails into the heels of his hands, gritting his teeth against the piteous sobs wanting to issue from his throat. Damn his uncle for not allowing him in. It was the least he could do for his wailing cousin to sit by her side while she endured the birth of their bastard child. Hinata gave another pained yelp and Neji's palms began to bleed. Curse the segregated houses, curse his bloodthirsty uncle, curse the powerful blood flowing through his veins…Neji wanted to explode, and thought for sure that he would-…
The cry of a child split the caged bird's veneer of sorrow and nerve like a needle in a balloon. Hinata's weak gasp mirrored her Nii-san's silent one; like a pair of swimmers coming up for a much-needed breath of air, the cousins surfaced from their politics to breathe in the smell of family.
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A/N: OMG, I am so sorry for the delay in updating this one! D8 Things got so busy around my house…and the holidays-…but the good news is that I got accepted to college~! So my future thus far is set. I can finish out this story in peace. :3 Thanks for being patient with me, and I hope you can forgive this large gap in updates. Short chapter this time, I know…but I promise chapter 10 will be longer, as it is the end.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Naruto Shippuden, Neji, or Hinata. In fact, I don't own anything associated with this fan fiction except the plot. Hence, I am not a thief/crook/butt pirate.
