A/N: YOU GUYS! Thanks for all the love you're giving for this story! :) And, I thought I'd start telling you now that I have finished writing HTS. LE GASP! Haha I actually freaking finished a story for once! There's one more chapter after this one and then an Epilogue. AND THEN there will be another story in this world as I am making it into a series :) So don't worry, this isn't the last you'll be seeing of these characters in my little plot bunnies.

To guest reviewer Kurouchi: Thank you for commenting, and also thanks for reading HTS! Hmmm, we'll all just have to wait and seeeeeeeeeeee what Sasuke's up to :)

XXX

Gaara scoffed, pulling me towards him even more, my back flush against his chest. "Told you." His words were said directly into my ear, but even then I barely registered them at all.

I stood there staring at Sasuke as he gave me a calculating look before he turned away completely, speeding away to Karin's side. His back was to us as he brought her to a standing position.

"Crap," Gaara breathed, tossing me aside.

My body fell to the ground, and I didn't do anything to stop it.

I sat there in the dirt just staring at everyone.

What was I doing?

I had let a vampire get to me so easily? So quickly?

What have I done?

All my life I had been taught to not trust vampires, for they are evil creatures with insatiable blood-lust. They must be put down no matter what. That is absolute.

Sasuke made me think otherwise.

He made me.

It had all been planned.

He planned to use me like some tool.

Even now as I stared that revelation straight in the face, the tiniest part of me was unable to accept it. I wanted to cut that piece of me out, to tear it up and bury it deep below the ground. I never wanted to feel it within me again.

But, I could not do it, I could not let it go.

So I stood and ran for them again. Sasuke did not give me another look the whole time I'd been on the ground. He did not even turn to make sure I was alive. Gaara could have killed me, and Sasuke wouldn't have noticed.

Gaara was closing the gap between him and Sasuke again, his hand held a wicked looking blade.

There was no thinking, there was no time.

I hurtled passed Gaara, pushing every ounce of strength I had into my legs as I threw myself between them, closing my eyes and stretching my arms out wide.

Gaara's blade sliced right through me, and it took a few seconds for my mind to catch up with my eyes as I looked down at the blood staining my shirt.

The pain flared up, but I shoved it down quickly, blocking it out as best I could.

Gaara looked at me in shock, and then he looked down at his blade. The surprise still on his face, as if he couldn't believe he was the one who actually did it.

Sasuke roared behind me.

xxx

Gaara never saw him coming.

Sasuke whipped around me and backhanded his face, sending him flying across the clearing.

As my legs began to wobble, about to give out on me, he scooped me up, cradling me gently to him as he dashed into the forest and away from the others.

Before setting me down, he eased the sword from my body, and I let out a cry from the pain it brought. He stuck the weapon into the ground, knelt down, and then lay me down flat against the grass.

I coughed, blood came to my lips and then trickled down to nestle against my hair. Sasuke brought his hand up to the side of my face, stroking his thumb across my cheek as he looked me in the eyes.

"You," I said, struggling to get any words out at all, my whole body burned with the effort. "You liar."

He didn't object, didn't say anything at all until, "Sakura."

Just my name on his lips, that was all it took for me to let out a sigh of relief.

He reached over to the long dagger sticking out of the ground on his left, running his open palm against the sharp side of the blade. His eyes remained on mine the entire time.

"I'm sorry," he said and shoved his wounded hand against my mouth.

He was too fast, his blood got in my mouth, sliding down my throat. I cast him a furious look, but he held his hand over my mouth still, unwilling to take it off until he was sure I had ingested some of his blood.

It came on slowly, but I could feel my strength return to me the longer we waited like that. I wrapped my fingers around his wrist and pushed, shakily at first but then I was able to lift his arm away.

"Sasuke! Why did you do that?" I asked. "How could you...you know I don't ever want to be healed by vampire blood."

He didn't say a word, instead he put his attention towards my abdomen. In one quick motion, he pushed up my shirt just high enough to see that the stab wound had completely healed over.

I smacked his hand away and shoved my shirt down. "What is the matter with you?"

He stood up, looking utterly unaffected by my words. "I now see that it's too much to ask of you to stay put. You are incapable of following directions, even when they are to protect your own life."

I stood up, too. His blood had completely healed me, and all my strength was back. I felt stronger than ever actually, but it still pissed me off to know the reason behind this miraculous recovery.

He waved me off as I opened my mouth, and he spoke before I could even get a word in.

"By now, Karin has finally cast her spell to incapacitate our enemies," he said. "The first one she used to nullify magical abilities took a lot out of her, so she has had to bide her time in order to cast another one."

So, I was correct in my earlier assessment.

"But-"

He sighed. "Sakura, I'm going back now. Please don't do anything in which you put your life in danger again. You know the consequences if you are to die with my blood in your system."

There was no need to remind me. I was fully aware that any wrong move could mean the end of my mortal existence and the beginning of my undead life as a vampire.

I cut him another angry look, but he had already turned away from me, plucking the blade from the ground.

It didn't take long for us to make it back to the clearing. Sasuke had been correct in his reasoning of Karin already taking care of everyone as Gaara and his other two companions lay in a pile off to the side.

I ran over to them. They were not dead, their breaths still coming in evenly as they lay at awkward angles. My hand came to my chest, and I was thankful that they were spared.

Suigetsu, Jugo, and Karin were all standing near each other, Sasuke slowly approaching them.

In her hands, Karin held the Sun Stone that they had stolen from Gaara and the Moon Stone that Suigetsu had acquired this evening.

I couldn't find it in me to put a stop to the ritual. It would start, and Sasuke would be able to walk in the sunlight. But, I also wasn't about to go join them, so I sat down next to the pile of unconscious bodies and watched.

My arms wrapped around my legs, pulling them in close to me. Sasuke and the rest were too far away for me to hear clearly, though I was able to catch a few words that Karin spoke, albeit they were in a completely different tongue.

Both Suigetsu and Jugo had their own role to play, bringing blades to their palms and draining their blood into a goblet. Then, Karin pulled out a vial of something else, but from the look of it, it was more blood. Whose, I had no idea, but this one must have been important because when she added it to the goblet, the whole thing began to smoke.

Sasuke took the cup from her and looked at it for a while. He then looked at his friends before him, and then finally he looked back at me. Our eyes met and I couldn't look away as he drank from the goblet.

I still couldn't believe I was sitting by and allowing this to happen.

But, I'd never personally be able to keep this from Sasuke.

I didn't think I'd have it in me to forgive myself.

XXX

Q: What would you change about yourself if you could?

A: Hmmmm I'm going to have to say that I wish I was more confident. I wish I could just go out in the world and strut my stuff without worrying about other people's opinions. Oh man, what a less stressful life that would be! :)