A/N: This was beta'd by Panlock on ao3, please check out their series "The Arrangement"! It's amazing and 100% worth the read.
When blue met lilac Naruto swallowed thickly.
"H-hey Hinata," the prince mumbled out through his hoarse voice, scratching at the back of his neck in anxiety.
"Naruto!" The princess cried and rushed to his bedside, practically throwing herself on him. "You're awake! Thank god. How are you feeling? What happened?" Hinata rambled out quickly while wiping at tears as they spilled down her cheeks.
The blonde let his sister hug him lightly and tried to gather his thoughts. He was still recovering, but he's sure his family and friends want answers. He doesn't feel ready to talk about any of it, though.
"I—I don't know. We were at the pond. And then I heard it- him, the fox demon. He- he told me that I was- that Ita-" Naruto began to feel his breath quicken and tried to calm himself, if nothing else than for his sister. "He got rid of it..." The pregnancy. The thought is paralyzing; he had been carrying Itachi's child, and now everyone knew exactly what that bastard did. Shame burns in his stomach and it's all he can think about as he looks down at his stomach. Then, soft hands brush his cheek's and Naruto realizes he's been crying. He rears back, trying to get a grip. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't-"
"There is absolutely no need to apologize. I—We are all—angry would be an understatement. If you would have told us, we wouldn't have allowed him to stay with you. We would have called off the contract, we wo-"
"And that's why I didn't tell you! It's my duty to protect my people." Naruto cut his sister off, looking at her with determination, even though he knew the tear streaked cheeks worked against him.
"How can you protect them when there is no more you to give? What would you have done if the fox hadn't intervened?" Hinata asked tentatively, but not backing down.
"I—I don't know..." Naruto replied and looked down at his hands. He felt defeated and hurt. He didn't want to face his parents, or anyone else. When did he start hiding from his parents? When did he start having to hide everything from them? When did he stop caring about himself?
After that first night with Itachi.
Naruto hasn't had an opportunity to recover since the moment he was left alone with the eldest Uchiha heir. Itachi was immediately cruel and Naruto hadn't even tried to fight back. He didn't see a way out that didn't mean war for his people, so he let it happen. He wore the dresses and the hair extensions and let Itachi do any damn thing he wanted. In the end none of it mattered. The bastard still rejected Naruto in front of everyone and if it hadn't been for Sasuke—
Where is Sasuke?
A new wave of dread and panic rolls through him. Sasuke knows, too, exactly what Itachi got away with. Why isn't he here? Naruto looks to his sister and can see the worry and grief all over her face. He feels so useless. He's supposed to be a prince and protect others, but all he does is make everyone else worry.
"Naruto?" Hinata asks and combs back his short hair with her hand. She wants him to open up, to let her help.
"C-can you go? I just want to be alone right now." Naruto asks and curls further into the bed. He turns toward the wall, hiding his face from Hinata and barely keeps it together. She stays beside his bed, but after a few seconds Naruto can hear her slowly stand.
"Don't shut us out, Naruto. I love you." Hinata said and left the room quietly. Naruto heard her on the other side of the door turning others away saying that he was asleep, and he appreciated it.
Then he laid there, staring at the wall. Hoping her lie would become the truth and he can just sleep through the rest of his life.
Hours passed and Naruto stayed in his bed the rest of the day. People came by periodically to check on him, but he pretended to be asleep. Luckily, everyone either believe he was resting or understood he wanted to be left alone to lick his wounds. Sasuke never visited, and Naruto can't bring himself to ask.
He hated this. The whole situation. The pain was renewed knowing that he couldn't be a man. It feels like all his prior attempts to live authentically had been a joke. How can he show his face now? The prince who miscarried, and everyone knows it. He lays on his side, curled in on himself with his hand against his abdomen. He can feel the raised scar on his stomach from the fox but knowing that it's his womb on the other side of his hand devastates him. His body has worked against him, and someone had used him.
But worse was that he let them.
He had so many thoughts plaguing his mind, none of them good or productive.
But one thought came more than the others. He needed to go back. He needed to know what had happened and what this seal means. He needs to understand why the fox was so adamant about Naruto staying away from the Uchiha clan.
Naruto bides his time and waits until the evening nurse checks on him. Once she is gone and the sun sets, he snuck out. The blonde took his usual path and found some borrowed clothes along the way. He tries to move quickly, not wanting to waste his window of time, but his body is still healing. It's likely someone will notice he's missing, and his family will send people looking for him, so he needs to use his time wisely.
He manages to make it outside the perimeters of the castle and kingdom without setting off a single guard and sets off toward the pond at a slightly slower pace. It doesn't feel like he's bleeding as badly as before, but he's fatigued. The last thing he needs is to pass out here, still recovering and weak.
As Naruto got closer to the pond, he felt the fox's powerful aura again. The presence isn't as angry this time, for which he is grateful. It wasn't exactly inviting, either, but there was no growling as he approached. Once he made it past the tree line and into the open area, he saw it. The large fox was curled up next to the water, watching his every move.
"Back already?" the fox asked in a bored tone.
The prince nodded slowly and made his way to the beast, wondering if he should sit beside him or stand at a distance.
"Come. Sit with me. I will heal your wounds." The fox said in an annoyed tone this time as he swished a tail to and fro.
Naruto moved over and looked where to sit when suddenly one of the beast's tails swung around and knocked his legs out from under him. He fell into another two tails that turned him and cradled him.
"Now. What do you want?" Naruto heard the voice vibrate through his back as he laid on the demon.
"Why do you care for me?" the blonde asked suddenly looking directly at the beast, trying to hold onto any confidence he had left.
The fox made a soft grunt and rolled his eyes, one of his tails starting to flick a bit. "It's not because I want to, I can tell you that." The deep voice responded after a long silence. "I once made a mistake and unluckily was saved by an ancestor of yours. He made me watch after his heirs if ever needed, and of course you need my help. I went so long without being summoned but you bring me here too often."
Naruto looked up at the sky as he felt a warmth suddenly envelop him, his skin tingled, and he recognized the feeling of magical healing. This was different though, so warm and intense, he felt his whole body become rejuvenated in the minute the warmth was there.
"And of course, when I leave you have to go and bring that damn clan here." the fox barked more to himself than at the prince.
"I had to! When I was born my parents promised me to them as long as their army kept us in their borders. I didn't have a choi-"
"You did this for land protection? You humans truly are weak. Why I ever owed your family..." the fox trailed off and let out a deep aggravated sigh, "If you needed protection so badly you should have gone to another clan. Any other clan."
"Why do you hate them?" the prince asked before thinking and was suddenly vibrating with the loud laugh he got in response.
"Have you ever read a history book? They wanted all power. Tried to capture every magical beast to keep for power. Killed most of them. That was my mistake, I let them find me and your ancestors came and fought with me. I imagine they only wanted you to torture you for the rebellion your family caused against them."
Naruto felt himself prickle at the idea, it seemed possible. But he didn't think Sasuke knew, or else he wouldn't act the way he does.
"What else do you want? I have places to be." the fox asked and moved the prince onto his feet before beginning to stretch.
"What is this?" Naruto asked, placing a hand on his stomach, the fox looked at it and then up to the stars before meeting blue eyes again.
"It's my seal, it beckons me to you if you need me. I also tried to attach magic to it to stop your puberty from fully happening since I know you didn't want it to. If you need me, touch it and think of me. I will be able to come if you need me. But know that I will link with you before I leave. I am not wasting my time with your human business." the fox grumbled at the end and looked off into the tree line.
"Thank you." the prince said with a soft smile, he felt somehow whole again. Any part of him that was hollowed out was now filled by the knowledge he had something to protect him.
The fox nodded and began to move away when Naruto had a new thought, "What's your name?"
"Kurama."