Woah, wait what? Another update? Already? What does that mean?!
It means you guys are the best reviewers ever and that I am true to my word! Thanks to peppercornpie for the super quick feedback and I hope you all enjoy!
There was an uncomfortable silence that I was sure was meant to be intimidating. Either way, it definitely worked. The silence combined with the stillness and all of the eyes watching expectantly…
'What if it's a trap?!' 'It's not a trap! Deidara and Sasori wouldn't…' 'Think Himawari! What if it was? Where's your phone? Do you even know where you are?' 'Look they can't do anything. Bee saw me leave with Sasori. I'm sure Sakura and Ino are freaking out too.' 'And what? You think they'll call the cops?' 'What do you think they're going to do? Kill me? This is a high school club initiation. Relax.' 'That guy? With the piercings? You're not the least bit freaked out?'
The more the silence festered, the more my thoughts grew more unstable. Kisame had always been intimidating, Kakazu's scars and stitches made him look like something out of a nightmare, but Pein… Pein was almost terror in human form.
'Who was this guy?'
"Okay, okay! I'll go first!" I almost burst into laughter as Tobi disengaged from the groups formation, meandering to me cheerfully. His chipper attitude contrasted so heavily with the groups ominous appearance, it was kind of a relief.
"Hi Hima-chan! Remember me?" I nodded, still not quite sure how this whole thing worked. I'd met Tobi before and he'd been equally amicable the two other times, though I doubted we were as close as he thought.
"Yep. Tobi is a good boy." I heard Deidara choke as I said the words but the boy in front me continued to laugh, odd mask still in place.
"Okay Hima-chan, tell me the password." Deidara placed his head in his hands and Sasori's lips quirked up slightly.
"Uh… wait. Isn't the whole point of the initiation for me to not tell anyone the password?" Deidara nodded continuing to hold his head in his hands and Tobi shrugged his shoulders.
"But… but you can tell me. Tobi is a good boy!"
"Uh… no." Immediately his shoulders deflated and he sank down, mumbling something before walking back sadly to the group.
I glanced up Pein, wondering if he shared in the same amusement as me or Deidara's annoyance, but his face was just as stoic as before. He didn't bare any indication that Tobi had done anything.
"Wait was that… did that count?" Deidara chuckled before nodding.
"Oh yeah. That's two down." Oh well, that was pretty easy. Really easy… 'What if it's a trap?' 'Really? You're being paranoid again. Look, if Tobi's in this group how hard could it actually be to get in?'
"Way to be a total fuck up Tobi. Come on asshole, we got this shit." Kakazu mumbled something as him and Hidan meandered toward me, the latter screaming his usual obscenities.
"Okay bitch, will you tell me the password?" Hidan was his usual aggressive self, and something about his nonchalant behaviour loosened me up. I'd gotten used to his profanities now, returning his cheeky grin with one of my own. 'It's an initiation. Isn't it suppose to be a little fun?'
"You'll have to try harder than that." His grin widened, and Kakazu smirked beside him.
"Correct fucking answer." He moved closer, shoving Sasori away from me, before sweeping me off my feet. Literally.
"Wait, Hidan! What are you doing? Put me down!" Holding me like he was carrying lumber he began walking through one of the paths in the wood, mumbling to kakazu to be better about carrying the lantern.
"You know, I want you to know I think you're fucking alright."
"Put me down!"
"I like it when you struggle!" At first I'd just been shuffling around but at his words I hit him a few times, realized he might have been enjoying it a bit too much before I stopped.
"You know I can walk?" He shrugged before placing me down in a cushiony box. I glanced at it, took in it's strange shape before a sinking feeling overtook me.
"You want to tell us the password now?" I glanced up Kakazu, whose lantern made the box's purpose all the more obvious. "Or you could pay us." I blinked looking up at Kakazu's strange request.
"Like a bribe?" He nodded, not seeming to share Hidan's enthusiasm for the box.
"Shut the fuck up. We're burying the bitch alive Kakazu. We already discussed it."
"Look I don't care what we do, but give me a couple thousand and I'll happily look the other way." I was too focused on Hidan's first words to even process just how much money Kakazu was asking for.
"Did you say bury me alive?!" The others slowly entered the clearing and their light made the deep hole beside me apparent. It was sloppily done and not the usual precise type of rectangle you see at funerals. It was definitely deep though. Glancing at Hidan's hands I noted the dirt beneath his nails.
"Did… did you dig this?" The hole must have taken hours to dig, which was quite frankly a lot of work for a petty high school initiation. Hidan responded by pressing my shoulders back, trying to get me to lie down.
I glanced over at Sasori who shrugged, not the least bit concerned. He rolled his eyes and motioned to Hidan, mouthing the word 'dramatic.'
Right. This was exactly like what Sasori had said. They wouldn't actually bury me. He'd dug the hole for show, no way would they actually bury me in it. I nodded at him and he shared the motion, awkwardly giving me a thumbs up.
'Right Himawari. This is just pretend. It's not actually a big deal.' With those thoughts I smiled up at Hidan before lying down into the coffin.
"Alright." He chuckled amused.
"Here Himawari." Kisame walked over, passing me a small handheld flashlight.
"What the fuck? Look dip shit you had your initiation attempt and it fucking sucked." Kisame rolled his eyes, swatting Hidan's hand away.
"She's being buried alive. Give the girl a break." He smiled down at me, and I had not known how nice he was, his sharp teeth might have terrified me for a brief second.
"Someone's got a fucking soft spot." Hidan mumbled some other obscenities while I mouthed 'thank you' to Kisame who nodded back comfortingly.
I think he was beginning to be my favourite.
"Alright lets seal it up." With that Hidan placed the lid of the coffin on top and I tried to calm myself down. I wasn't claustrophobic, but being locked in a tiny coffin would terrify anyone.
There was a sharp pounding in one of the corners.
"What're you doing?"
"Nailing it shut." Was Hidan's mumbled replied and slowly there was the trickle of another wave of panic.
'Breathe Himawari, breathe.' 'They're going to bury me alive.' 'Stop it. Look, Sasori talked to you. It's all for show. It would be insane for them to actually put you in a hole. They'll just spray some dirt on you.'
"All done, lift it up." I felt the coffin shake and I covered my mouth so I couldn't scream. It certainly felt like they were lifting me up for real, and as I felt the coffin begin to descend it really felt like they were lowering me in.
'Relax. It's a joke. They're not really…' As I heard the soft sound of dirt being sprinkled onto hardwood, I also heard their muffled voice become more distant.
'It's not real…' My hands shook as I turned Kisame's light on, relieved to have it and yet terrified at the same time. I was in a coffin. I heard more dirt before I heard nothing but an eerie silence.
Nothing at all.
'What if they left?' 'No you'd hear them leave.' 'Not if the dirt was blocking out all the sound.' 'Breathe Himawari. This is fine. You're not in any pain, you're just in a coffin… don't panic…'
"Guys?" The words came out as a whisper, something about sound in this cramped space making it feel all the smaller. Don't speak. It'll only make you panic more.
Breathe. I mean, how long can they keep you in here? Not for too long right, I mean… didn't oxygen run out in places like this? How long did that take? How long had I been in here?
'Five minutes tops. You can wait another five.' I nodded trying to relax. 'I mean, they can't leave me here right…'
The longer the silence grew, the more my quiet panic tried to take over. I'd yet to hear any sound from above me… but no, they wouldn't actually bury me…
"Hey Himawari!" Exhaling I responded to what I assumed was Kakazu's muffled voice. I was trying to recall if Hidan had ever used my actual name. "We're not letting you out until you tell us the password, or you could agree to my earlier request." I heard Hidan curse at him, but there wasn't anything malicious in his words.
'See? It's initiation fun.' 'There's nothing fun about this.'
They were still there. They hadn't left. They weren't going to leave, and I'm sure they'd get sick standing around a coffin waiting for someone to say a stupid word. Especially with Hidan's lack of patience. I'd get out of here in no time.
It's just a waiting game… I mean, they'd let me out eventually, right?
I wasn't sure if it'd been another ten minutes or another fifty, but the longer I was in this coffin, the smaller it began to feel. I'd paid attention to Deidara's and Sasori's insistence that it was all pretend. I was probably still above ground with a small sprinkling of dirt on the coffin. The others had probably moved far away to scare me, and yet… it was still terrifying.
My arms were getting sore, my legs were starting to itch and it felt like the air was going stale. The earthy smell of dirt had seeped in, adding to my earlier fear.
'What if I'm actually buried in a coffin? Six feet under?' 'You wouldn't be able to hear them if you were six feet under.' 'Being buried alive is still being buried alive, does it matter how much dirt is above us?!' 'Relax. It's not real. None of it is real.' 'We're stuck in a coffin, how can you expect me to relax?!'
"Hey Hidan, I think it's gone on long enough!" I waited for his gruff response but was met with silence.
'Why isn't he saying anything?' 'Because they left… They buried you in a hole in the ground and left.'
"Hidan I know you're still there!" But I didn't know, and the lack of response was getting unnerving. I'd been trapped in this thing for almost an hour, maybe more maybe less, but this had gone too far. "Let me out!" It was a mistake saying those words, because hearing them out loud sparked my panic.
"Come on, let me out, this isn't funny anymore!" My cries were dramatic and panicked and yet, there was still no response. "Let me out!" Nothing. Nothing. Why weren't they saying anything? They were still there right? There had to be? Couldn't they hear me? I banged on the coffin door, the muffled sound adding to my panic.
All my eyes saw were dark wood and piercing light. This entire night had been a stupid disaster. Getting blindfold and taken into a cemetery in the woods, sure. Being buried alive? It was ridiculous. Screw it. I didn't care about this stupid club or any of it, I just wanted to go home and sleep.
"Let me out! Let me out!" My fists hurt, and no matter how loud I screamed I got no response. This was too much, they'd taken it too far. I'd had enough!
"The… the password is weasel!"
Soo... thoughts? What do you think is going to happen? Did anyone call her caving? Is it realistic? Are the characters in character? Do you think the Akatsuki's actually dangerous? What's going to happen next?!
I really want to know what you think so please review and let me know, and like usual, the more you review the faster I update!
