Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto

Notes: This was part of my gift for the Naruto secret santa thing on lj. It's Neji/Hinata and it gets a little dirty in the second part

XXX

Hinata rested her arms on the edge of the bridge and looked down into the flowing stream below. The night was still and pleasantly warm. She was tired and her body ached; she had just come back from her first mission as a jounin. It had been difficult, but it was successful. An hour ago, she had wanted nothing better than to go to her room and rest. But now that she was back in Konoha, she felt restless. And it would be a waste to sleep away such a gorgeous evening.

She closed her eyes as a soft breeze embraced her. She smiled slightly at the thought of being a jounin, but it practically disappeared as she thought about her family. Would they respect her finally? Would her father stop seeing her as weak? Would Hanabi respect her? She looked with unfocused eyes at her hands. And what would Neji think?

A quiet sigh escaped her as she thought of her genius cousin. After the chuunin tournament he had begun treating her more kindly. But then he began to completely ignore her. They had barely spoken during the last few years; whenever they met he acted as if she wasn't there. He probably wouldn't even spare a thought to her making jounin.

She shook her head; this was why she had recently left the Hyuuga compound for her own apartment. She needed to get away from her family and make her own path.

The kunoichi turned from the rail and started to walk back to her apartment. She hadn't gone a step when she sensed a familiar presence.

"I used to never think you'd ever make jounin," a deep voice said from behind her, "I figured you'd be lucky to make chuunin," there were more footsteps as he walked closer, "Hinata-sama."

She turned and two pairs of pupil-less eyes met, "And what do you think now?"

The smirk left his face and he looked at her like he had never done before. Like he was actually contemplating her question.

Then the smirk returned, but there was something different in his eyes. Hinata wasn't sure what it was.

"Hn," he said as he started walking towards her, "I guess you're not so weak."

She watched as he walked past her and to his own place. But when his words finally registered she gave a beaming smile and practically skipped all the way home.

XXX

Hinata wasn't sure what would happen the next day when she saw her cousin. Part of her wondered if he would ignore her again. But another part of her thought that maybe - and she blushed a little - maybe she and her cousin could finally get closer. She had always admired him and his disdain for her had always hurt. She hoped this could be a new beginning.

The next morning she slept in. Her team wouldn't be meeting up until later and she didn't have anywhere else to be. When she finally got up the willpower to go find breakfast, it was to an empty house. Everyone else must be busy today, she thought, taking a bite of toast.

She quickly finished her breakfast and then put on her sandals. A quick jog around the village would jumpstart her day. And maybe - this time she almost controlled her blush - she would see Neji.

To her disappointment, she didn't see her cousin on her run. She walked back to her apartment disappointed and confused. Confused because she couldn't quite understand why seeing her cousin was so important to her.

The rest of her day went normally enough. Her team still trained together when they could, but lately they had been going on less and less missions together. But she was definitely off her game that day. Shino had looked at her with a raised eyebrow when she was too slow to block his attack. Even Kiba had wondered aloud on "what the hell was wrong with Hinata." She left practice with only a slight blush and a boggled mind. Why couldn't she get her cousin out of her head?

The question followed her as she wandered home. Her thoughts were in disarray as she unlocked her door. She hadn't taken a step into her doorway before she had a shuriken out and her byakugan activated. She lowered her weapon when she heard a familiar snort.

"You can put that down," Neji said as she turned on a light. She looked over to where he was reclining on her couch, one of the only pieces of furniture in the apartment. Her face was impassive, but her heart was racing.

"Neji-niisan, what are you doing here?" she asked politely. He sat up before answering.

"What are you doing tonight?" he asked, his voice bored. Hinata eyes widened a bit in surprise.

"I'm making myself dinner and then looking over a new jutsu," she said, proud that she didn't stumble over her words. "Would you like to join me?" she asked without thinking.

At his nod, she walked swiftly to the kitchen to prepare their meal. Luckily she had just gone shopping and actually had ingredients to make a decent dinner. She quickly chopped some vegetables before throwing them into the pan. She couldn't hear Neji in the other room; but she could still sense his familiar chakra.

When their meal was finally ready Hinata sat down on the couch next to Neji, hoping her cousin would finally give her a more complete answer to why he was there. But to her disappointment he ate silently; he didn't even look at her. Finally she couldn't take it anymore.

"Neji, did you just come here to eat with me?" she asked, dropping the suffix that didn't really suit him anymore.

He finally looked at her with his pale eyes that revealed nothing. "No," he answered, "I came for this too." And with that he grabbed her shoulders and pressed his lips firmly against hers.

Hinata didn't react for a moment, too stunned by the other ninja's action. But when her mind finally worked again, she leaned deeper into the kiss. She felt a strong arm wrap itself around her and let herself be pulled against his chest. His body was warm and hard but his hair was soft as she ran her fingers through the silky strands. Calloused hands ran up and down her body causing a shiver to run down her spine.

The shiver turned into burning when Neji turned his attention away from her lips and moved to her neck. He trailed kisses and soft bites down her throat and she gasped softly.

"Neji," she spoke quietly, her breath short. "Should we really be doing this?"

He replied as he smothered her collarbone with kisses. "I don't see why not." And then he looked in her eyes and gave her one more breathtaking kiss.

Then he rose gracefully from the couch and Hinata watched his slender form head for the door. He grabbed the doorknob and then looked back at her, "I'll see you tomorrow night," he said, a determined and mischievous look in his eyes. He left before Hinata say a word.

Hinata sat motionless for a moment before gathering up the plates. He would be back tomorrow night, she thought and gave a little smile. This wasn't quite what she meant by getting closer to her cousin, but she was more than pleased at the change in plans.

XXX (This next part isn't a continuation of the above. Well, I guess it could possibly be. But it's more stand aloneish)

Hinata gave a smack to the hand that was currently making its way up her shirt.

"Neji, I'm cooking," she said with a little exasperation. Apparently that was no deterrent to the man who was planting kisses along her neck.

"It was a long mission," he said in way of explanation and pressed his body against her back.

"That's why you should eat!" she argued and tried to continue cooking. But the skilled fingers running up and down her curves was more than a little distracting. Not to mention the hardness that was being pressed into her back.

She gave a soft moan as those oh-so-skilled hands began to knead her breasts. Suddenly she couldn't remember why she was cooking.

"C'mon," he murmured in her ear, "It's been too long for you too." The warm breath against her face sent shivers down her body.

"Neji," she gasped, and this was more than enough invitation for him. He spun her around and began to unbutton her shirt, pressing kisses against her skin as he went. When he finished, Hinata grabbed his shirt and pulled him in for a passionate kiss. Hinata found herself pressed against counter and she wrapped her arms around his neck for support as he ground his hips into hers. She squirmed as she felt her body respond to her lover.

So when Neji began unzipping her pants she was only to happy to assist. She tugged her pants and underwear off and then kicked them to the side. Neji had simply pulled the zipper of his pants down.

The edge of the counter dug into her back as she wrapped her legs around him. He made no sound as he entered her - he never did- but she couldn't resist a throaty moan. She placed her hands on the counter to help support her weight as Neji thrust into her again and again. Her groans grew louder as his motions became faster and harder. Finally, the pressure in her body peaked as she came with a cry. Neji followed closely behind.

Carefully he lowered her to the ground. She was quick to jump into his lap.

"We really need to get a rug in here," she sighed against his neck, "The floor's too cold."

"We'll go get one tomorrow," he replied as he wrapped his arms around her.

"I think I smell the food burning," she murmured.

"It's fine. I ordered delivery before; it should be here soon."

She smacked him lightly. "You didn't want my cooking?"

He chuckled softly and nuzzled her neck. "There's just something else I wanted from you."

Hinata smiled and relaxed into him. She would make sure he returned the favor the next time she came back from a mission.

XXX

This was a really hard pairing for me to write. But overall I guess I kinda like it.