Sharne had to get out of the castle. She had to clear her head of two certain ninja in her mind right now…a silent wander down to the peaceful meadow would settle her head. All that could be heard were the crickets chirping by the riverside once she'd reached her desired spot. The moon and the stars looked so mystical and dreamy on the water's reflection. The night was so calm, the temperature so pleasant and warm without any chill…she was wearing only white denim shorts and a pink floaty vest top. 'Heh, and there is usually thunder and lightning on my birthdays.' she thought.

...

A suspicious-looking ninja in the Village of the Stars watched her from the forest, out of view. He wasn't wearing his hitai-ate incase some Star-nin thought he was some rogue ninja, stalking their princess in the night - of whom gazed into the night sky, then down into the river as if looking at her reflection.

She was alone.

She was sad.

He caught the glistening at the corner of her eye, a tear?

He decided she looked out of place in this village.

The ninja silently made his move towards her, slowly, without even crunching a leaf, stopping directly behind her.

.~.

"...Sharne."

.~.

She gasped in fear, shaken out of her daydreams and instantly spinning around.

"Ka.. Kaka…shi?"

She was stunned. She had been thinking of him all day, and now, he was here? He was here. For real. He had found her. Was this a dream?

"Heh. Didn't think I'd forget your birthday, did you?" he smiled his genuine smile. The headband was missing she noticed, allowing his floppy hair to fall over his face.

She felt a heat in her cheeks. It really was him. But why did he bother? She left him after all…

"I got you a present, but I had to leave it in the Leaf Village, so you'll have to come back for it. Will this do for now, Princess?" he smirked and opened a box, handing her a strawberry flavoured Pocky stick from it. She smiled distantly at the sentimentalness behind the treat, but then it turned into a frown of confusion at him. He only smiled back, then looked at her with a somewhat intense look.

"I've come to take you home, Sharne-chan..."

Her lips pursed together and she shifted her eyes elsewhere. "Why? I…I can't…"

"Why not?" he asked, almost demandingly. "You're not happy living here, and you didn't want to leave, did you?" he put both of his hands firmly on her shoulders to make her look at him. "Sharne…I want you to be happy again. Come back to the Hidden Leaf.. I miss you keeping me company when I take breaks from training. I miss your random chatter about anything when I'm supposed to be training." he paused, realising his grip was still a little firm, and rubbed her shoulders once. "Hmm...I need you."

She blushed at the intensity of his stare and his words, she'd never seen him reveal emotions like this before. "But…what about...Rin?"

"Eh-.. Rin?"

"She's in love with you..."

"Ah…yeah. The other day, she told me how she really felt, and asked me if I felt the same way. I told her I wasn't interested."

"Oh…"

"I told her I loved someone else."

Sharne looked up into his onyx eye with her hazel ones, with a longing and hope that he could never refuse. "Who is that…?"

He paused. Softening his grip, he slid his fingers to the sides of her shoulders.

"You."

A/N: Omg. *_*