Things to remember:
A) I own all characters who you have never heard of.
B) I do not own the characters from Naruto, Digimon, Fruits Basket, Crescent Moon, or Please Teacher, sadly. But that's okay. I'll live.
C) This is a work of FICTION. So because of this fact, anything I say goes. No complaining if something below does not make sense. I will be more than happy to explain my logic if you ask me.
D) Roughly 38 chapters
More relevant info to this chapter: More on their capture. The month has moved to January. Way shorter than last, but it's from Mikoto's viewpoint. It gives you insight on what happened in their capture.
Sincerely wishing you all well,
Kida-Asumi, the Captin of Sirius
Cold. The kind that seeps deep into your bones.
This was not, however, what Mikoto woke up to. It was to L's soft voice speaking to Akina's unborn child.
"Don't worry, baby. We'll get out of here." He was murmured. Sitting up, Mikoto frowned.
"Where are we?" She asked. Her eyes widened as she looked around. They were in a solid rock room. It reminded Mikoto of a jail cell or a basement. Standing up, the dark haired woman wandered over to the door at the top of the stairs. Of course, it was locked. Examining it revealed a small door. It looked as if food could be pushed through it. When she turn to join them once more, a slight gleam from the wall beside her caught her eye. Upon inspection, Mikoto pulled out an all too familiar necklace.
"We'll hide it here so that we won't lose it. This will be our place forever, Madara."
"Mom?" Akina's fear-ridden voice broke Mikoto out of her trance. Forcing a reassuring smile onto her face, Mikoto returned to her children and Hikari.
"Shh, Akina. I'll get us out of here." She murmured softly, sitting down beside the three. L crawled into her arms as Hikari turned in her sleep.
"Why take us?" Akina asked, tears shimmering in her onyx eyes. Mikoto shook her head, cupping her daughter's cheek.
"Because he wants me. And the only way to keep me is to have you guys." Mikoto explained, beginning to rock L. Akina nodded, sighing.
"I hope that I won't have to give birth to my daughter in this dark and dreary cell." She murmured, leaning against Mikoto. A moment later, her hand rose to stroke her belly. Mikoto pressed a warm kiss to her forehead.
"You won't, my darling, you won't. I will get us out of here." She promised. She meant it too.
Their confinement lasted for a couple of weeks, in reality. But in the minds of the captured, it seemed to be years. The food passed to them was small, and often Mikoto went without so that Akina and her child could be properly nourished. It was always cold, and no matter how they curled up, they were always cold. It seemed to become one with them, this cold; it never ended and never really began.
L, little six year old L, had a rough time. His immune system had always been weak. In fact, it got so bad that he was often quarantined to his room. And the lack of his normal sugar intake often kept him awake with nightmares and made him delusional. His blood pressure dropped dramatically as well. The bags under his eyes that would one day be infamous developed in this basement. L will grow to view them as scars from the incident; a permanent reminder of what he went through.
Hikari Inuzuka. The beloved only daughter of Tsume Inuzuka. Her immune system was just as bad as L's. They suffered through the cold with high fevers and violent coughs. On some days, the brunette could not stomach her food, often regurgitating it back up. Mikoto would comfort her just as her mother would, and Hikari would be eternally grateful for Mikoto's strength in her later years.
Despite this, Hikari felt like an outcast in that basement. After all, the three occupant with her were close family. She often felt alone, and missed her mother and brothers terribly. In that cold basement, Hikari learned of solitude and realized that it was such a terrible thing.
Akina Uchiha. This experience would, as most could predict, change her life forever. The outcome would make her stronger than anyone could have predicted, and her love and dedication to her family would be solidified after this struggle. She thought of nothing but the safety and health of her daughter those terrifying weeks. She would pester her mother with questions, and Mikoto would assure her that the baby had its own version of insulation. Some of Akina's first wrinkles developed in those couple weeks, and as she grew closer to her due date, she grew nervous.
Mikoto recognized that perhaps she would have to deliver the baby and began to make preparations to do so. The basement wasn't empty. It had a few candles, oil, matches, towels(which they used to extra blankets and pillows), the few silver wear items they had been allowed, and a limitless supply of bottled water. In the small corner of the room was a toilet.
Neither Akina nor Mikoto were thrilled at the thought of Mikoto having to deliver the baby. In fact, it terrified them both for similar reasons. So they talked about it at least once a day. Hikari and L were given instructions on what to do and as the day drew very close, they began to have drills.
Madara visited them during their time in captivity every other day. His presence made them all tense and they would sometimes react violently too it.
For instance, the other day's incident was still fresh in their memories. They had been talking about constellations when their captor entered the room. He swept Mikoto into his arms, shoving L out of hers. Akina caught him, pulling him close.
"Lovely." Madara murmured, choosing to ignore Mikoto's shudder at his touch. Behind them, Akina was shielding L's eyes as Hikari hid behind her.
"Thank you." Mikoto managed to grind out. Chuckling, Madara pressed a kiss to her forehead.
"I only give compliments to my favorites, you know." He said. Mikoto nodded, trying to focus only on him. If she didn't, he'd turn to the distraction and become enraged.
"May we have more pitchers? I fear that we will not have enough." She explained as he began to mouth her neck. Madara hummed noncommittally and with a sigh, Mikoto let the issue drop.
He was a battle she knew not to take.
A/N: Madara is a huge creep. If any of you read Messages in the Sky, you'll see more of this. More next chapter ;)
- Kida-Asumi