The Eternal Soundtrack
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. That copyright belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.
"Flattery" belongs to Aly & Aj, from their album Insomniatic.
Track 7: Flattery
A dark form shadows an open doorway, standing before a light form. She—the light form—is someone who is not cloaked in bloody scars and inky malevolence like he—the dark form—is. And he looks down at her with well-veiled urgency, apparently apathetic in regards to the person before him. But he is the one who chose to come here to her.
She does not recognize the importance of this. The light form only sees unrepentant selfishness. And he cannot blame her for that. He really cannot.
/Please, don't flatter yourself
You're not the only one
This heart has ever felt
Please, don't exaggerate
Don't tell me you're okay
Okay, okay/
"What do you want me to say? That I'm sorry for wanting you to stay? Do you want me to apologize for asking you to give up on revenge? I'm not sorry for that. And I'm not sorry for attempting to stop you from getting revenge on your own."
"I don't need your apology. I don't need anything from you."
The light form shakes her head, throwing up a hand in a tired question. She does not have the will to listen to this anymore. She has not had it for some time.
"Then what are you talking to me for? You can take your non-guilt trip somewhere else, because I don't want to hear it."
"You're just being stubborn now, Sakura."
A sardonic glint shifts through the light one's eyes.
"Well, you would know all about that, wouldn't you?"
/I will admit it, if you admit it
It's harder then we both thought
It's easier to fall apart
Look where we are
I can forgive it, I can't forget it
You left me here with all these scars
And you can't deny the hardest part
I'm not in your arms/
The dark one frowns, barely. His apathy is safety. And this is dangerous ground.
"So this is all about getting your own revenge, is it? Retribution for those years?"
"No, Sasuke."
The dark form flinches slightly at the missing honorific, the movement barely extreme enough to call it such. But a slap would have felt softer.
The light one doesn't notice. She is vindictive and she will not desperately search for reactions she has long stopped wishing for.
"I'm not like you; I know when to let something go. And I let everything related to you go a long time ago."
He scoffs, eyes dimming. But she does not know that there had been a light in them to begin with. She is certain that they are always void of life and light. Tonight would be no different, she thinks.
And she is wrong. Or was. She is right now, now that her words have smothered the small spark.
/We're more hurt than we appear
The world will never know
We both have tasted tears
My dear
You're denying what I say
Don't act like it's okay
'Cause it's not okay/
"All that talk about bonds… It was all just a farce to justify your attempts to bring me back and have your own revenge. How duplicitous."
"No. It was about our bonds. I held onto that for as long as I could. Longer than I should have, but I'm known for attaching myself to things that are best left be."
Slate eyes narrow. A pale jaw clenches in sync with two lightning-scarred fists.
"But a one-sided commitment can't last, no matter how strongly the one side holds on. Eventually, they realize that they are grasping at thin air, nothing more, and that's not going to save them from falling."
The dark head drops an imperceptible millimetre. Eyes lower to the shadowed ground.
"So, I'm not sorry for trying to stop you. And I'm not sorry for not wanting to see you. I gave you more than I should have; it was high time I began looking after myself, instead of someone who didn't need it or want it."
/I will admit it if you admit it
It's harder then we both thought
It's easier to fall apart
Look where we are
I can forgive it, I can't forget it
You left me here with all these scars
And you can't deny the hardest part
I'm not in your arms/
He does not move—a misplaced statue.
"You're not sorry for those things, but you do regret caring enough about me to do them? That makes next to no sense."
"So did my obsession with you."
"Which you say you were wrong about."
"Yes."
His head rises slightly. Dark eyes are back on her, but still, she cannot see them.
"So, if you were wrong about that, you can be wrong about this, since they are both such illogical ideas."
"I don't think so."
"Why not?"
It is her turn to scoff, crossing her arms over her ribs and casting sharp eyes on his shoulder. Even if she cannot see his face in the shadow, she cannot make herself look at him properly.
"Because I'm not the silly little girl I was then. I know better."
"Just like you thought you knew better then."
/It's not in the cards
It's not in the stars/
She gives a careless wave and shakes her head, sending light locks tumbling.
"The naiveté of youth. I'm all grownup now, Sasuke."
The dark form does not flinch this time at the harshness of his name on her lips. But his eyes do blink slightly faster than normal, just once. Still, she cannot see it.
"And in another ten years' time, you're going to view your present self as naïve and foolish. And you'll regret this decision too."
"I highly doubt that."
"Yet I know it will happen."
Bright eyes harden; granite within soft flesh.
"You may leave now."
He cannot help but point out the incongruence in her request—a wound begs for more pain so that it might be ignored.
"You wanted me back, now you want me gone. What was the point, Sakura?"
/I'm not sorry
I'm not sorry
You're not sorry/
Her eyes snap up sharply, staring at the abyss where his eyes are. She only sees blackness; shadows within shadows and she cannot discern the difference.
"The point was, I loved you. The point was, I needed you."
"And now…?"
"And now the point is, I don't need you. The point is, I forgive you, so if you develop the ability to feel remorse someday, you don't have to come seeking me for forgiveness; you already have it. The point is, just because I forgive you doesn't mean I want to have anything to do with you."
"That's it then? That's how you want it to be?"
"Yes, it is. Now, if you'll please leave; I think this conversation has long outlasted its welcome."
The dark form stops just outside the door, shadowed back facing her.
"You forgot to mention the most important point, though."
"What?"
/I will admit it if you admit it/
""And the point is, I don't love you anymore." You forgot to say that."
A hesitant silence sweeps in; nothing but the moon and wind to create ambience in the night.
Her words are solid—unforgivable.
"And the point is, I don't love you anymore."
A rueful smile twists the dark one's lips, face now brightened by the night's luminance, but the light one will never see it.
/Just please, don't flatter yourself
Please, don't flatter yourself/
"Now thatmakes sense."
Hearts shatter into nothingness but they never make a sound.
End of Track 7
Guttersnipe's Word: Hmmm… I've never used this style before. It's very bare and a little awkward. But I wrote out the conversation first, no description. And when I thought of elaborating on it, going "he said," "she said," I couldn't see my usual wordage going in between the lines. It is what it is, as it were.
And please review, people! I just want to know that you got through it. There's no need for fancy talk. But please do drop a word.