I did it! I got one last chapter in before leaving to Europe. Yeah, that's all I wanted to say. Hope you like! =)
How Sasuke Met Sai:
A little boy with spikey black hair and pale skin was sitting up at the edge of his bed at the nurse's office. He was silently fuming to himself for passing out again during P.E class. Why'd he have to be so weak? What was wrong with him? He laid his head to rest against his palms, miserable and tired.
The nurse approached him.
"I'm sorry, Sasuke, I'm going to have to step out for a while. A kid fell off the playground and seemed to have broken his leg." She grabbed her coat off the rack. "You stay here until I get back."
"It's fine," he mumbled with his face still hidden.
When her footstep faded and the door silently clicked behind her, he lifted his head to stare angrily at the dinosaur trimming around the office. He hated being a kid, feeling so helpless, being commanded by those older than him, and then being so physically weak. His vision blurred and his head nodded off, but he vigorously shook it to retain consciousness. This incident only made him feel angrier.
The door flung open and the all-too-familiar chubby face of his Partner stepped through before closing the door behind him. He had this wide grin of triumph on his face.
"Told you you needed me," he said.
Sasuke scowled.
"I'm just hungry." He hopped off the bed, but as soon as his feet touched the floor, dizziness overwhelmed him and he felt his whole world spinning. When he opened his eyes again, he found his head being cradled in Naruto's lap. The ground beneath them was unusually hard.
The blonde started chuckling.
"What happened?" asked Sasuke as brought his hand to his head. It was pounding.
"You passed out," answered Naruto, "and I caught you."
"Oh," the raven was about to sit up but the blonde held him down.
"Don't. You're too weak." With that, he scooped Sasuke up, not without difficulty. The raven closed his arms around Naruto's neck and held them there as he was transferred gingerly from the floor to the bed.
Sasuke frowned. "And you're too strong. One day I'll be stronger than you, just wait."
"You're such a little boy, Sasuke," laughed Naruto. He unbuttoned his shirt and offered his neck. "Here, drink."
Sasuke complied, tightening his arms around the blonde's neck to get better access. The blood tasted so good. It rushed into his mouth, thick and bitter, hugging his taste buds and settling coolly at the base of his stomach. From there, Naruto's blood diffused and combined with Sasuke's, this new mixed blood flowed throughout his veins and provided instant relief from hunger and gave vitality to weak muscles.
Sasuke could feel his stomach bulging, knowing he was done, and Naruto felt his Partner slowing to a stop. The raven unfurled his arms and laid himself back against the pillow.
"Stop believing I'm so weak that I need you to save me all the time," said Sasuke with a pout.
"What? No thanks?" Naruto ruffled his Partner's hair. "I can't help if I'm overprotective of you. You are kind of weak."
"It's not my fault."
"Whatever. Just take a nap and I'll meet you after school."
Sasuke nodded, settling comfortably into the bed for a short sleep. He could already feel his eyelids drooping watching his Partner leave, then everything went dark.
In his dreams, and like all children's troubled dreams, a monster was chasing him. A great thick snake with black curls patterned against its scales and pointed fangs dripping red venom that sizzled every time droplets hit the floor. Little Sasuke was running as fast as his short legs could carry him, across parks and playgrounds, schools, and churches. He was yelling and his face was wet, but every person he passed disregarded him with a scowl, ignoring the boy being chased by the hungry snake.
Within his unconsciousness Sasuke's memories danced across his mind, reminding him how weak he really was, how much he relied on his Partner for blood, and so his dream beat down on him by intensifying the light of the dream-sun and of the chase. The heat quickly made him weary, his legs wobbled beneath him until finally giving out. Instantly the snake was upon him. It wound itself around Sasuke's frail body, squeezing and making him feel short-of-breath and ready to explode. Its head slithered to his neck, he struggled and cried out, but this only prompted the snake to finally sink its wet fangs into his neck.
Sasuke startled awake. For a few seconds he thought he was still asleep since he still felt the weight of the snake pressing down on him and its fangs still buried within his neck, but he quickly regained coherent thought. This being that was drinking from him was not a snake but a boy, he could tell by the weight, and the hair that drifted across his face was black not blonde, so it wasn't Naruto. Anger erupted from Sasuke, and hearing those excited slurps stealing his own blood gave him enough strength to harshly thrust the boy off him. He toppled over the side of the bed with a loud thud and a grunt of surprise.
"What the hell are you doing!" Sasuke yelled. "This is my blood. My own and my Partner's! I'm not some weak human you can prey on, you fucking vampire!"
The intruder stood up. Sasuke noted how similar he looked to the vampire boy, but this only made him angrier. He was not a low-life vampire.
"I was hungry." The boy simply stated. He wasn't worried, mad, or defensive. His face was a perfect mask of composure. Sasuke hated him more for this. He knew his own face was a perfect picture of red anger. He was also expecting the other boy to at least either grovel for forgiveness or have his fangs bared ready to fight and finish his meal. This boy did none of that.
"I'll teach you a lesson then."
Sasuke hoped off his bed and took a swing at the boy. Somehow he missed and this vampire boy landed the first blow to his stomach. Sasuke doubled over, ready to quit, but then the memories of Naruto always saving him and the snake's voice slithered into his head, reminding him how weak he was. He charged forward and banged the vampire against the wall. With his teeth already bared, he sank them into the boy's neck and pulled on the white skin. A cry of pain erupted from the expressionless boy. This sent a thrill of victory down Sasuke's spine, but he was interrupted, shoved off and sent reeling into the bed frame. The vampire was already upon him, bending him over the mattress, towering above him, his hands grappling with his.
I won't lose this, thought Sasuke. I want to be strong.
He raised a leg and kicked the boy off him. The vampire tried very hard to hide the pain, but Sasuke could see the slight grimace and it only made him more excited to see the boy's perfect face finally flawed. He wanted to make an even larger dent. He punched it. He heard a grunt escape the vampire, it thrilled him, and he punched again then again. The vampire slid to the floor. His white skin was already turning purple beneath an eye. He was finally defeated. Sasuke had done it. He wasn't as weak as anyone or he himself thought he was. He had just faced a vampire on his own and won!
"Don't you ever steal blood from a Bloosucker again!" Sasuke yelled.
He left the boy lying on the floor and cleaning up after his injuries. His own stomach was certain to be bruised, but it was little compared to what he had done to the vampire boy, and he was so proud of it.
Days after he was conflicted on whether to tell Naruto of the incident or not. Would Naruto treat him differently or not? In the end, he decided not to, and after a few months it didn't matter since it was so long ago. To have that personal victory was enough to him. To know he was capable of being strong, and able to hold true to that statement he said so long ago to his Partner that one day he'll be stronger that him, it made him determined even stubborn.
So Sasuke beats up Sai, and then Naruto heals Sai. Of course, you know Sai's coming into play soon ;)
