At some point, they stopped treating Sasuke like a sad prisoner who needed saving. It didn't happen gradually but rather all at once, and still he didn't notice until some point after the fact. It was a strange realization. While they made their slow way north to Yellowstone (Naruto didn't seem to be in any particular hurry to do anything these days), the three of them treated him like family and nothing else.

Sakura seemed to have adopted him. She treated him like a sickly son, and he couldn't decide whether her mother-henning drove him crazy or secretly pleased him. Kiba treated him like a kid brother, and Sasuke found he couldn't stop asking the man questions about his friend Hinata or Kiba himself. Something about the guy was oddly soothing.

And Naruto . . . well, he was his usual self again. No more talking softly and getting sad smiles. He was bright and obnoxious and loud, and it amused Sasuke plenty to watch Sakura try to strong-arm him into doing what she wanted. Or to stop doing what she didn't want. But as Sasuke recovered his strength - and he recovered it quickly thanks to Sakura - he felt a change begin to take over.

The pain faded to be replaced by tension. He felt like he was walking on a tightrope, one step away from falling into something he couldn't see. He felt constantly on edge, constantly waiting. And the worst part was, he had no idea why he felt that way. The more he tried to conrol it, the worse it got.

It took almost five days to reach Yellowstone. It shouldn't have taken that long, but Naruto stopped every time something caught his attention along the way. They stopped a lot. Sasuke didn't really mind, because he'd rather begun to enjoy himself. Until the strange feeling set in. He tried to keep busy and tried never to be alone, because it seemed worse when he was.

When they reached the park entrance, he was sitting up front with Naruto. The blonde idiot had been plenty pleased when Sasuke started following him everywhere he went, although it wasn't just him. Sasuke felt so nervous it was making him sick. Naruto paid the entrance fee, making friends with the park ranger until Sakura snapped from behind them,

"Stop bothering the man and just drive already, baka!"

Sasuke jumped, heart racing at the harsh tone in her voice. He immediately turned his face toward the window, staring blankly at the passing scenery as Naruto started driving again. What the hell was that? Why am I suddenly so nervous?

"Mou, you don't have to be such a bitch," Naruto whined.

A slapping sound startled Sasuke again, head whipping around to see Naruto rubbing his arm with a pout.

"Don't call me that," Sakura warned. "I'll feed you to the wolves."

Kiba snorted from his lazy sprawl on the couch. "Like they'd want 'im. Ne, Sasuke?"

Feeling off balance and weird, Sasuke turned back to the window and opted not to speak. He wasn't sure he couldn't control the temble in his voice.

"Sasuke?" Naruto inquired.

For several moments no one spoke, then Sasuke nearly leaped out of his skin when a hand landed on his arm. Naruto jerked back as though burned, and Sasuke quickly unbuckled his seat belt. "I . . . have to . . ." He stumbled to the bathroom and closed the door.

Shit, what the hell's wrong with me? Naruto's touched me plenty. Hell, last night we curled up on the bed together! They'd been sleeping in the bed since the beginning since there was only one bed. But they'd kept to their own sides. Last night, feeling vulnerable and worn out, Sasuke had shifted close to the man and curled into him seeking warmth. Naruto had immediately uncoiled, turning him to his liking and spooning up behind him. Sasuke had felt peace for the first time in days.

And now he was acting like a scared kitten. He forced himself to stop panting like he'd run a marathon, pulling in slow, deep breaths. It helped calm his racing heart. He kept it up until he felt light-headed, which seemed to provide a little clarity. He took a drink of water, was pleased to note his hands had stopped shaking, and went back up front.

Kiba just gave him a barely-interested glance, but Sakura's eyes narrowed with a speculative expression. Naruto just gave him a sunny grin and asked,

"You excited? We might see a wolf!" as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

Sasuke thought he might be falling in love all over again. The smile he gave the man was even half genuine. "Yeah, I hope so. Can we stay here for awhile? I want to see everything. Old Faithful, the mudpots, the hot springs, the geothermal vents, the -"

Naruto chuckled. "All right, all right. We'll stay for at least a week. This was the main place all four of us wanted to go. And the park's not crowded right now, so we won't have to worry about running into a herd of humans."

"That might be kind of interesting," Kiba commented. "See one of Nature's dumbest beasts, congregating and interacting. Might be revealing."

Even Sasuke couldn't help grin at the irreverent words.

Sakura laughed. "Well, we don't have to worry about supplies. We're stocked for at least a decade. As long as no one gets gored by a bison, I think we're good."

Winter jumped up onto Sasuke's lap, startling him. Not as badly as before, though. He soothed himself by stroking her soft fur. She purred her appreciation, circling a few times before settling in. It took quite some time to get to the RV park, but it gave Sasuke time to feel calm again. Holding Winter definitely seemed to help. The lull of boring conversation around him was incredibly comforting. Sakura lectured Kiba about being lazy and helping out more, Naruto ribbed her about her fussiness, and Kiba just good-naturedly took it.

The stray thought drifted through his mind, I wish they were my family. I wish nii-san were here, and this would be like the perfect vacation. He felt something clench in his belly. The thoughts were too traitorously close to wishing away his father and even his mother. After all, the day of her death had been what brought his world crashing down around him.

"Hey," Naruto said abruptly, wrenching Sasuke out of his melancholy, "no sulking. It's a beautiful day, so there's no reason to frown."

Sasuke glared at him, but the words actually made him feel a bit better. Normal words, as if for a normal kid's normal issues.

"He means to feed you to a grizzly if you don't obey," Kiba piped up.

"That reminds me, this is bear country," Sakura chimed in. "If we go on a hike, we have to be vigilant."

"Damn, woman," Kiba groaned, "don't you know how to unwind for even a second? You're so uptight it's stressful."

Naruto snorted. "She'd fall apart if she unwound, man. You know that. It's in her genes."

Sasuke sniffed. "As if genes have anything to do with that. She's just more responsible than you two clowns."

"Ouch!" Naruto gasped, clutching at his chest.

Sakura smiled, looking pleased. "That's right. It's for your own good. You two might be dangerous to yourselves."

Managing not to grin was quite a feat. Naruto's indination stretched to epic proportions, and Kiba just smiled and adopted an even more indolent sprawl.

It didn't take long for Naruto and Kiba to hook 'Winnie' up at the RV park, at which point it was just past four. Sakura slapped her hands against her thighs. "Should we explore the visitor center today? Tomorrow we can start walking around the park."

The sudden noise again startled Sasuke, and he could tell that Sakura noticed. He pretended not to see the questioning look she shot him, so not ready for her to say anything. Ever. She didn't, but he had a feeling her silence wouldn't last forever.

o0o

Naruto draped an arm around Sasuke's slender shoulders, using it as an excuse to touch the kid and drag him closer. In the last five days some of the thinness had filled out. He thought the kid had gained a few pounds, flourishing beneath Sakura's care. He was moving without hesitation, though he never made sudden or quick movements. The bruises were fading, now a muted purple instead of vivid black and blue.

But with the return of his health came other, less happy changes. Sasuke was exhibiting the strange behavior Naruto had witnessed when the kid was around the bastard. He was still his usual snarky self, but he sort of followed Naruto around like a lost puppy. He obviously didn't like being alone, and it made him a tiny bit clingy. Normally, Naruto didn't think he would mind so much. However . . .

Worse, the kid was jumping at every sudden move or loud noise. It would send near-panic flashing across his face, making him blanch and breathe too fast. So far Naruto had pretended not to notice, because he instinctively knew Sasuke wasn't ready for a confrontation. And probably didn't even know why he was so nervous. But Naruto did know, and it was beginning to make him sick.

He's strong enough now that he's hyper aware of his surroundings. He's gone into fight-or-flight mode. It's like he's waiting for the next attack to come. Because soon after Sasuke recovered from the vicious abuse, the bastard would begin anew. Naruto had no idea what to do about it. I don't know what to do for him. I don't want to walk on egg shells or treat him like he's fragile, because then he'll think he's fragile, and damn it I don't want him thinking there's something wrong with him! What should I do, butterfly? What do you need from me?

Sasuke didn't offer even token protest to Naruto draping himself over him, but he balanced it out with bitching.

"We've been driving forever. Why can't we go for a long walk today? We could probably see some things today. And I don't want to eat at the restaurant. I don't like eating at restaurants. Do we have to go to the gift shop?"

"Why not?" Naruto demanded, ruffling the kid's hair. "We're tourists. Tourists go to gift shops and buy tacky shit."

"I guess we're proud supporters of stereotypes today," Kiba mused.

Sakura snorted. "I'm sure they'll have plenty of things that aren't tacky, baka. Maybe I can find a cute stuffed bison."

"Why do ya gotta call them that?" Naruto demanded. "Everyone else calls them buffalo."

"Because they are bison," Sakura said in a prissy tone, "not buffalo. Any educated person with half a brain knows that."

"Guess that means Naruto has only a quarter of a brain," Sasuke suggested, giving Naruto a look of doe-eyed innocence.

It was god-damned cute. Naruto had the ridiculous impulse to lean down and kiss that impertinent mouth. "Watch your mouth, brat," he said good-naturedly, lifting his hand off the kid's shoulder to push his head down.

Sasuke's lips twitched like they did when he was trying not to grin.

Sakura was right about the gift shop, but Naruto had a hard time paying attention to stuff with his mind occupied by Sasuke. Once they got inside the boy shrugged out of his hold but stayed close. Sakura won his attention asking him about what kinds of things he liked, and he stuck by her side while Kiba wandered aimlessly. Naruto slipped outside and took out his cell phone.

Itachi answered after three rings. "Naruto. How are you?"

"We're all right," Naruto replied. "I'm worried about Sasuke, though."

"What happened?"

"You know how he'd get all skittish after his bruises and injuries healed?"

"Yeah."

"He's acting like that now. Not as bad as usual, I think, but it is getting worse." Naruto sighed, raking fingers through his hair. "What do I do, 'Tachi? I'm so afraid he's gonna bolt and try to get back home. Right to that waiting bastard."

A long pause followed. Then, "I think you're going to have to confront him," Itachi replied. "About everything. About Father's abuse, Sasuke's behavior, and Mother's death. He's so shut down it's killing him. He needs to get it out, he needs to grieve her death and the terrible turn his life took. It's going to be unpleasant. But it's got to come out."

"Yeah," Naruto murmured after a time. He felt heavy. "It's going to be really unpleasant. You know it might backfire."

"Maybe. But like a broken bone that needs to be broken again to heal properly, it has to be done."

And feel safe enough to do it. Safe enough to break down and let someone be strong for him until he could spread his wings and fly again. Shit. He dragged his hand over his face. "Yeah. I'll . . . yeah. Talk to ya soon." Ending the call, he pocketed his phone and stared up at the sky. No inspiration was forthcoming.

"Naruto? What's wrong?"

The tentative sound of Sasuke's voice made him want to smile and cry at the same time. He yanked the kid to his side in a one-armed hug that might have been too tight. "Nothing, butterfly." Everything. "Nothing at all."