A/N: Here's the next one, featuring more of Tenten and Hanabi.


Early the next morning, after a troublesome night of tossing and turning, Neji awoke to the other side of the bed empty and the sound of clinking dishes in the kitchen.

He got ready for the day, and by the time he stepped into the kitchen around 7:15 Tenten was setting down bowls of miso along with the main dish of rice and fish.

"Good morning," she greeted, trying to smile at him. "I hope you feel rested?"

"A little," he admitted with a heavy sigh, sitting down at the table with her. "Is Hanabi joining us?"

"Yes, she just stepped into the bathroom for a moment." The brunette reached over and squeezed his hand, deep sorrow in her eyes. "I… I heard. Of last night."

Swallowing, he nodded numbly.

"The poor girl," she sighed heavily, resting a hand on her belly. "So young. And engaged, to boot. Her fiancé must be inconsolable."

"It was terrifying to see Hanabi-sama so shaken up last night," Neji quietly confessed. "For a moment, I thought we were about to have a total mutiny break out in the village. I thought Uncle had been murdered."

For a brief moment, a wry smile spread across her face.

But all too soon Hanabi emerged from the hallway, her eyes still red and puffy and her face with an unhealthy pallor about it.

Tenten rested a hand on her shoulder as she sat down, a sympathetic frown on her face. "Are you feeling better?"

Nodding, the teenage girl murmured a quiet thank-you before picking up the chopsticks.

The meal went mostly in silence between the three of them, the only sounds that of chopsticks clinking against ceramics and soft chewing.

Halfway through her egg, Tenten set the chopsticks down and abruptly stood from the table. "Excuse me," she hurriedly murmured as she rushed out of the room and down the hall.

Neji looked up in surprise, but when he looked to Hanabi, she just smiled.

"Must be another sick day," she offered.

"A- ah, I see." He nodded.

Another moment of silence hovered between them before she finally sighed, setting down her chopsticks. "She was a good friend of mine, y'know."

"The…?"

"Yes."

Neji's eyes softened. "I'm sorry for your loss."

Shaking her head, the young heiress continued, "I'm really scared. If they got to her, who's to say any of us won't be next? What if they pick on me? Or you? Or Tenten?"

"Whomever they choose to bully, they will not be harassing my wife," he darkly replied.

"But we can never be sure, can we?" She countered, her eyes misting over again. She blinked rapidly and brushed the rising tears away, shakily sighing. "I'm scared, Cousin. I don't feel safe in Konoha anymore."

"Once we can secure a deal with Mimei, perhaps we can discuss getting you away from here," the older suggested, pausing to take a sip of green tea. "If your father allows it…"

"What if we just… left altogether?" She persisted, pearly eyes wide and uncharacteristically childlike. "If Father would allow it, of course - he would likely say yes to you and Tenten-neesan because of the baby, and if he would allow me to study from afar…"

"I don't want to leave just yet," Neji protested. "Not while Tenten is still pregnant. There could be a chance that something goes wrong, and I don't want to risk anything."

"But if we went with Mimei…!"

"Let's not be too hasty about this," Tenten piped up weakly from the doorway.

Both Hyuuga looked up at her.

Neji got up from the table to try and stabilize her. "Are you well?"

"I will be," she huffed a laugh as he helped her sit down again. "Thank you."

Fixing the younger of the two with a serious look, she inquired, "Now what's this of running away from town?"

Hanabi looked down meekly. "I… I don't feel safe here anymore, Tenten-neesan. I don't want to live in fear anymore. I don't want to wake up every morning worrying if today is the last day I see you or Neji-niisan or even Father alive."

The woman's eyes softened, and she reached over and pulled her into a hug. "Oh, Hanabi…"

"The young woman's death has really shaken up the clan," Neji quietly added, gripping his chopsticks tightly. "It was apparently serious enough to sway the entire council into agreeing to give ties with Mimei a try."

"All at once?" She asked incredulously. "I'm surprised. Some of them are so stubborn Hell would freeze over before they even agreed on something."

"She was different," Hanabi sniffled. "Now nobody can ignore it anymore."

After a heavy pause, Tenten asked quietly, "What was the girl's name?"

Hanabi clenched her eyes shut. A tear slipped down her cheek. She could not speak.

Compassion twisted her heart, and she bowed her head as tears began filling her own eyes.

Neji pulled the two into a group hug as the women began weeping, resting his chin atop Tenten's head and staring solemnly at the wall.