A/N: Ug. I know- I've been sucky with updates lately, and I'm sorry. I really have no excuse except that I'm terribly lazy. Well, enjoy! Lyrics and chapter title belong to Death Cab for Cutie.


Innocence

Chapter 12 – I Will Follow You into the Dark

Broken Promises


The sky was dark with the progressing night. The forest seemed to be frozen- no wind to sway the branches, no animals to howl into the shadows.

Yoru liked it like this. It was soothing- it gave him time to think out a plan.

The Akatsuki hide out- according to his sources- wasn't too far away now. He was so close- he could practically taste the blond boy's blood flowing over his tongue.

A soft smile played on his lips as he imagined the puppeteer's face when he killed his love. Horror- unbearable sadness- anger all mixed into one.

Oh, how sweet it will be to tear open the blond's chest. And then the sick symphony of ribs breaking and organs being ripped out will begin.

Yoru walked a little faster.

He was going to make the blond suffer. All of his grief and sadness would flutter out of his hands like lethal butterflies- and he would begin his torture of the blond boy's body.

The dark eyed man made a pact with the night then. He would give up his life- if it was the only way to kill the blond. He would sacrifice his very being just to have his revenge.

And revenge was exactly what he was going to get.

––––––»

Hot steam rose up like haunting spirits to obscure the embracing forms of Sasori and Deidara.

The heavy scent of apples and citrus wafted up their nostrils- causing a strange sense of euphoria to take over the two males.

The puppeteer ran his hands over the blond's soap-covered back while his lips worked feverishly on his neck. The red head sucked the slick, porcelain skin dry- and then nibbled on it lightly.

The younger boy's moans reverberated into the other's ear and fluttered out above the shower curtain.

Scathing hot water pelted down onto the two- the droplets leaving pale red marks in their wake.

"Mhm….Danna...that feels really good, un…"

The puppeteer smiled into the other's neck as he continued to tease the blond's flesh.

––––––»

Yoru's concentration was broken as a stick snapped loudly beneath his feet.

The gaping gash on the side of his head throbbed and ached.

The dark eyed man was never one for believing in luck, but fate was something else.

The puppet's tail only grazed his flesh, and the poison the metal was dipped in had worn off substantially on the other guards.

To Yoru, that was the deities way of saying "I'll let you live, only to kill the bastard's lover."

A pale shade of yellow gleamed in the shadows as the man smiled.

He didn't plan to live after the blond boy's death, that- he already reasoned with himself.

The dark haired man had paid the guards who survived the Akatsuki attack, and he figured they should be already at the hide-out.

His plan was working. It was a simple one, really: he would go to their hide-out with the other guards, kill whoever got in his way, kidnap the blond and the puppeteer, take them to his hide-out, tie them both up and make the red head watch as he tortured and eventually killed his lover.

And it was going perfectly.

––––––»

Sasori wrapped a clean, white towel around Deidara's thin waist. Clear water droplets dripped from his golden hair to trail down his chest.

After the puppeteer had tied a knot in the towel to make sure it didn't fall, he wrapped his arms around his waist so the younger boy was pressed against his chest in a tight embrace.

Deidara kissed the drops of water running down the red head's chest.

The older man sighed and pushed the blond boy back slightly. He took another towel in his hands and ruffled the other's hair.

Deidara giggled cutely and pushed Sasori back playfully.

The red head put on a false hurt look, and then a smirk crawled onto his features.

The blond gasped as the older man wrapped an arm around his waist and threw him over his shoulder.

Sasori threw the blond down onto the bed- receiving a "hmph!" in return.

Deidara threw the wet gold strands out of his face just in time to see the puppeteer jump on him.

Their lips met clumsily. The blond gripped red hair tightly- the other responding by digging his nails into the younger boy's side.

––––––»

The moon shone like a spotlight on the Akatsuki cave- like the sky was on Yoru's side.

Dark eyes darted around the perimeter of the hide-out, and then settled on the big stone door a few feet ahead of him.

He smiled slightly as he walked forward.

––––––»

"Danna, un?" the blond's voice whispered through the shadows as he nuzzled deeper into Sasori's chest.

"Hm?"

"I want you to promise me something."

Brown eyes shifted toward blue.

"I-I want you to promise you'll protect me, un."

The puppeteer was taken back by this, but recovered quickly.

"Protect you from what, exactly?"

"Pain, un."

The red head chuckled softly.

"Pein? Deidara, he would never hurt you unless you-"

"No- Danna, un. I mean pain- like physical pain…"

An awkward silence enveloped them before the blond spoke again.

"And emotional…"

The words were almost too quiet to hear, but with the puppeteer's close proximity to the blond, he caught them.

"Emotional?"

"U-Un…."

The younger boy inhaled before he continued.

"I-I don't want you to leave me Danna- please…."

Tears started to form in blue eyes- making them look glassy and fake.

"Never leave me."

Sasori blinked once. Where was all this coming from?

"Deidara, I'm not going to leave you."

The blond sat up and sat Indian style on the mattress. Blue eyes narrowed and look straight into brown.

"Promise me, un."

The puppeteer sighed and met the other's gaze.

"I promise I'll never leave you."

"And, un?"

The red head's gaze intensified. There was no hesitation; the words came out in only a whisper.

"I promise I'll protect you, Deidara."

––––––»

Everything was going exactly as Yoru had planned. It made him feel … invincible.

And it felt good.

The dark haired man had to stop in the shadows of the massive cave then. It wasn't until that moment that it all dawned on him- what he was about to do; what awaited him on the other side of the stone door.

He took a deep breath and raised an ash-covered hand to the hard, rock surface.

He pushed- and smiled wickedly when he heard a small click.

––––––»

The T.V boomed through the stone hallways.

Tobi was jumping up and down- a strange sort of hyper active dance.

He was swirling with immense speed- so much so that the orange of his mask was just a blur.

The speakers screamed some sort of techno music that the mask man obviously took a liking to.

Zetsu stood a few feet away, a sweat drop building on his forehead as he watched the other male with a dumbfounded expression.

––––––»

Sasori's expression became irritated as the music seeping through the bedroom door became louder.

Tobi's attempt to sing with the lyrics (which was more of just screeching) mixed in with the electronic beats to create something that made the puppeteer want to destroy everything around him.

Along with Zetsu's yelling to "calm the fuck down! Please, Tobi?", and the fact that he was practically millimeters away from having Deidara sweating and moaning beneath him- it was pretty much an understatement to say that he was pissed.

Here he was trying to have a little romance with his lover, and they dare to interrupt them with such juvenile behavior?

The red head growled (which was swallowed by the music), and practically jumped off of the bed and bolted out of the door.

Deidara rolled his eyes and collapsed on the pillows with a sigh.

––––––»

Yoru's boots clacked softly on the floor of the cave.

Not that anyone could hear it.

A dark eyebrow rose as the rough beats reached his ears in electric blasts.

The hallway ended, and a large living room came into sight.

The man had to stop himself from laughing at what he saw.

An orange masked man holding hands with a man with what looked like plants around his head- spinning all around the room in tune with the music blaring from the speakers.

So this is what S-ranked missing nin do in their spare time?

The side of Yoru's mouth twitched upwards, but soon turned into a sneer as his eyes landed on the red haired puppeteer.

He looked like he was about to explode.

He was yelling at the two men (trying to be louder than the music without resorting to full-out screaming), pointing his finger at them and then back toward the hallway Yoru was currently standing in.

Seeing the puppeteer jolted the dark eyed man back into his plan.

And- if possible- his eyes became a little darker as he back tracked down the hallway.

––––––»

Deidara closed his eyes- trying to block out all of the noise.

He hummed loudly as if that would somehow make the music and screaming stop.

He squeezed his eyes shut tighter.

––––––»

Yoru cautiously stepped through the hallway.

Most of the doors were closed- he was about to give up and go the other way when he spotted a door that was cracked open in the middle of the hallway.

He stopped at the door, and listened.

The music and yells seemed to evaporate, and the only sounds coming to Yoru's ears were his own breathing, and the blond boy's loud humming.

He took a gulp of air- as if that would make his heart stop beating so fast- and opened the door.

The blond was laying down on the bed- his eyes shut so tight that the creases in his eyelids could be seen from where Yoru stood; his lips in a hard line as he hummed an arcane tune.

The dark haired man took a few steps forward- the music obscuring every noise he made.

Dark eyes widened and his heart seemed to seize beating.

He stood just a foot away from the blond. He could now see how truly beautiful the boy was. His golden hair gleamed brightly even in the dim light of the cave; his lips pink and supple like a ripe strawberry.

And that skin.

It was a soft ivory; it seemed to glisten with evaporating sweat. It looked so delicate- like it would tear if Yoru placed his fingers on it.

Without really thinking about it, the dark eyed man reached his blackened fingers out and ran them down the boy's neck- the appendages tangling slightly in blond locks.

The boy gasped slightly- his pretty lips turning into a smile.

His turned his head so the whole of his neck was shown to Yoru- eyes still clasped shut.

The older man ran his fingers down the flesh again, but this time making sure his nails dug in.

The boy moaned quietly.

"Ah, Danna, un…. I thought you promised to never leave me." The blond laughed softly.

Yoru opened his mouth in confusion, but shut it before any words could escape it.

Smile still in place- eyes still closed- the blond boy reached his hand up and latched on to the front of the older man's coat. He pulled down until Yoru's lips were hovering in front of his own.

"Danna…" The boy whispered, "Did I ever tell you... that I loved you, un?"

The younger boy leaned forward- pressing his lips to the others.

––––––»

Confusion filled Yoru's mind as the lips he was admiring only a minute ago, were pressed heatedly to his own.

The blond obviously thinks I'm the puppeteer …. this is turning out much better than I expected it to …

The dark haired man smiled into the kiss as his hands found their way to the other's back.

––––––»

Deidara's heart slowed so that it seemed to beat in tune with the music still seeping through the door.

He had been wanting to say those words to the puppeteer for awhile now, but never found the courage to actually form them.

His hands roamed over the older man's back as he felt cold, rough hands on his shoulders.

––––––»

"TURN THIS FUCKING MUSIC OFF NOW!" Sasori screamed as he held his ears with his hands.

Tobi turned toward the puppeteer (who was wearing a nasty expression of hate), and made a small "eek!" noise as he practically ran to the T.V and turned it off.

The hide-out went completely silent then, except for the various sighs of "finally" coming from the other members.

––––––»

When the music stopped, so did Yoru's heart.

His hands inched closer to the blond's neck as his mind raced with excitement.

He counted down in his head: 1 … 2 … 3!

His hands clasped around the younger boy's neck tightly. Yoru pulled away from the blond's lips only to see wide, blue eyes staring up at him.

He was terrified; completely helpless.

His eyes were just as beautiful as everything else, Yoru thought.

They were a striking blue- almost having a soft sapphire quality to them. The dark eyed man mused that he wouldn't mind having one of those eyes for himself.

His pale, yellow teeth were shown to the blond as he smirked.

"Why hello." Yoru said in a whisper, "Remember me? You must- for such a … warm welcome."

The blond flinched slightly- his eyes widening into a look of fear.

There was only one thought going through his head: Danna, where are you?

––––––»

Sasori stalked back to his room- the pulsing in his head calming down now that it was quiet.

Brown eyes lifted from the floor to squint ahead of him. The door to the hide-out was ajar; the moonlight spilling into the cave.

He passed his room and peered in- only to be met with emptiness.

A sense of worry overtook him as he jogged to the stone door.

What the puppeteer saw as he looked out into the night would be something that would haunt him for years to come.

Deidara- his sweet, blond lover- knocked unconscious and slung carelessly over a shadowed man's shoulder- a thin strip of blood running down the side of his neck.

The puppeteer inhaled sharply.

Compulsion took over as he sprinted into the shadows- the cool, night air licking his face and whipping through his scarlet hair.

His breathing became ragged; his legs moving as fast as they could.

His vision seemed to darken so that he could only see Deidara.

––––––»

Deidara's eyes fluttered open. His head was pounding, and he could feel a rivulet of blood trailing down his neck.

His vision was blurry, but he could still see a shock of red hair running towards him.

"Danna…." His voice croaked.

Yoru looked down, and then followed blue eyes to see the puppeteer.

He smirked, and ran faster.

"DANNA!" The blond screamed- his voice a little hoarse.

The red head looked up to meet the terrified eyes of his lover.

"Deidara…." The puppeteer whispered to himself.

It all happened very quickly then: a blur ramming into his side; something cold and hard hitting his head with wicked force.

Sasori fell to his knees; his whole body collapsing as his head hit the ground.

The last thing he saw before he slipped into unconsciousness was Deidara, being carried away from him.

And then there was only darkness.


Love of mine some day you will die
But I'll be close behind
I'll follow you into the dark

No blinding light or tunnels to gates of white
Just our hands clasped so tight
Waiting for the hint of a spark
If Heaven and Hell decide
That they both are satisfied
Illuminate the no's on their vacancy signs

If there's no one beside you
When your soul embarks
Then I'll follow you into the dark


A/N: :sob: Poor Dei. Also- the reason it was so easy for Yoru to get into the hide-out will be explained in the next chapter. Until then, loves.