Imagine

"Is Hinata feeling better today?" Kiba asked, bouncing up and down on his heels. Neji nodded, before closing the door on the dog-lover's face. He turned around with a sigh, and headed towards the courtyard.

It had been three days now, since Hinata had told him that Aburame Shino had left for a week long mission. Three days since she told him that she was going to the Spring Festival with Inuzuka Kiba.

He entered the coutyard where his cousin was training, and sat on the ground near her; she finished her series of movements, then moved to sit near him. "Kiba dropped by."

"H-he d-did..?" she muttered. He could see her discomfort. "Wh-where is h-he..?"

"I told him that you're not feeling better yet," Neji answered; the day after Hinata said she was going to the festival with Kiba, he told Kiba she was sick.

"Neji!" She looked shocked, and frowned at him. "Wh-why would you d-do that..?"

"You don't want to go with him," Neji shrugged.

"He's my f-friend, Neji-ku-kun..." she sighed. "... w-why w-wouldn't I w-want to g-go with a fr-friend..?"

"Because when I told Uncle that you're afraid of bugs, I was lying horrifically..?" Neji offered. Hinata blushed, understanding his double meaning.

That girl... Neji thought, rolling his eyes. ... she doesn't even understand her own feelings, does she..? And it doesn't help with Clan complications and rivalries and what-not...

"I could go find him for you, Hinata-sama," he suggested, resting his eyes for a moment.

"Find w-who, N-Neji-kun..?" Hinata asked him innocently; he held back a snort of laughter. And now she's lying to herself... my little cousin has such healthy mental stability...

"A certain Aburame Clan Heir..?" Her blush settled back on her cheeks. Neji sighed again, shaking his head. "Really... you've been depressed every since he left, and as far as I've heard, he actually showed up at the house to escort you to training - not to mention letting you stay at his house - showing some feelings for you. I say you're both being really stupid, Hinata-sama."

She refused to look up at him. "I... I am n-not de-depressed..."

"When was the last time you left the house?" Neji countered. She didn't answer. "And what about all these weird chocolate cravings you've been having?" Still no answer. "You always eat chocolate when you're upset."

"D-do not..."

He stood up, rather sick and tired of explaining things to her. "Continue with the basics of Kaiten. I need to talk with Uncle for a while... I'll bring you some more chocolate with your lunch."

------

Hinata listened to Neji leave, before pulling her knees to her chest. She rested her head in her arms, closing her eyes as she tried to force away the pain in her chest. The pain had been growing rapidly, heedless of anything she told herself.

Me and Kiba will have fun at the Festival, she thought to herself. We'll go... he'll try to impress me with teddy bears... I'll come back home. Simple as that.

"Hinata-sama..?" She jumped, and looked up to see one of the housekeepers smiling at her with the same pale-eyes all of the Hyuuga Clan had. "Are you okay..?"

"I'm f-fine, Hiroko-san..." Hinata smiled up at her. "J-just... just a l-little tired from e-everyth-thing.."

The housekeeper, Hikoro, smiled back at her. "Would you like anything, Hinata-sama?" Why must everyone, even Neji-nii-chan, call me 'sama'..?

"N-no..." she shook her head, and stood up with Hiroko's help. "Th-thank you, Hiroko-s-san..."

"Of course, Hinata-sama," the housekeeper bowed politely, then left the Hyuuga Heir alone with her thoughts.

Hinata sighed, looking to the heavens for a sign to tell her what she should do. Shino... where are you..?

------

He looked up suddenly, his mind playing tricks on his again. His father rolled his eyes at him from the next tree over, before turning back to the previously-blank scroll... now it was slowly being filled with information.

Shino took a long, soothing breath, then glanced up as a few of his kikaichuu came back to him; they perched themselves on his glasses, nose, ears, and whispered to him in a language so few could hear, let alone understand. He turned back to his own scroll, and continued to scribble down information.

Hinata. He thought to himself, not pausing in his work. I want to make it up to you... but I don't think I can.

------

"What are you proposing..?" Neji stood infront of a glaring Hyuuga Hiashi, thinking over a reply. This definately wasn't on his 'top ten ways to stay alive' list...

"Just to invite some of the Aburame Clan to dinner one night," Neji restated. "Afterall, Hinata-sama is in a team with Aburame Shino, the Clan Heir. Dinner would be a chance to both strengthen their team work, and maybe settle some Clan rivalri-"

"No," Hiashi's pale eyes darkened, something Neji thought was impossible. It made the Hyuuga Genuis rather... nervous. "The rivalries are there for a reason, Neji. Don't assume that petty little dinner invitations will improve anything... is there a reason for you're sudden want to make peace where war shall rage forever...?"

My Uncle is stubborn. He stayed composed, his wind wheeling as it fought for an excuse. Poetic, but stubborn.

"Hinata-sama is worried over Kiba," Neji lied, using his Uncle's rivalry for the Aburame Clan against him; so long as his Uncle had a reason to believe him, any lie would work. "Inuzuka Kiba is upset because the Aburame Heir left without any notice, and Hinata-sama is worried over him... I thought that dinner when they returned would give Hinata-sama a chance to cheer him up, because she could invite him as well and then all three of them could be reunited."

"Danger is part of the life of a Shinobi," Hiashi glared, but Neji could see the relief in his eyes. "The Inuzuka boy is rather bothersome... he doesn't still show interest in Hinata, does he..?"

"He does, Hiashi-sama," he bowed his head respectively, and waited for what his Uncle said next.

"Ano..." the elder man sighed, and sat down in his chair. "Keep an eye on him, Neji... two eyes if you can spare them. Hinata will need someone strong when she becomes the Clan Leader, especially if she is not strong herself. And that Inu-boy... well, he isn't strong enough for her."

But I do know someone who might be... Neji bowed, and stepped out of the room. Now if only he could see that.

------

Hinata went over the basic Kaiten movements again, slowly to mesmorize the feel of the motions... her arms and legs strained against the movements, and she fell to her knees. Gulping air into her lungs, she laid on her back and cast her arms out to her sides.

After a few minute of blissful silence, she felt an ant crawl across her fingers and over her hand. It wandered for a few moments on her palm, before finding the hem of her shirt and choosing to slip underneath it.

She shut her eyes, and let her mind run away with her.

Suddenly, it wasn't an ant crawling over her skin, but fingers moving tantilizingly slow over the same path. The fingers paused for a few moments in her elbow, and an arm became more defined.

A shoulder followed that arm, and after that a torso. Another arm, with another hand, supported itself by her shoulder, causing a face to linger near her own... the fingers started moving again, this time back out towards her hand.

Dark, dark, mysterious eyes looked down at her, framed by a mop of black hair. They came closer for a moment, then closer again... her breath hitced, and all she wanted was to dig her hands into that mop of hair and tug those smiling lips closer... but she was afraid that if she tried, they would disappear all together.

They didn't move any closer, and the fingers moved off of her skin... after awhile, those arms disappeared, followed by the shoulders and that torso. Lastly, the face faded from her mind, those mysterious eyes with it.

She let out a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding, and brought shaky hands up to unzip her jacket; it was too hot out.