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Chapter Eleven: Compromise
Golden eyes locked onto pale lilac, neither one willing to submit and give in first. Finally the Hyuuga let out a frustrated sigh and looked away, the Inuzuka smirking triumphantly. "I'll discuss this with the elders; I doubt they'll accept your terms Tsume." Hiashi stated, unable to ignore the smirk on the woman's face.
"They want to be rid of your nephew and also avoid a clan war; if they're serious about either of those things they'll submit to my demands." She stated, earning a stiff nod from the Hyuuga. They'd finally finished discussing the details for the alliance between, though neither was particularly happy about everything; they'd both had to give in on some points.
They sat in an uncomfortable silence for several moments, neither one looking at the other. Finally Tsume let out a gruff sigh. "Do you think Neji and Kiba will be done having sex yet? As wonderful as it is to have you here Hiashi, I'd prefer if you left as soon as possible."
Taken back by the comment, a pale blush appeared on the Hyuuga's cheeks as he met the gaze of the rather feral looking woman. "I would hope so; we have been here for a couple of hours." The pale man stated, following the Inuzuka's lead and standing.
"Well, there's only one way to find out." Letting out a loud whistle once they were outside, Tsume waited for Akamaru and Kuromaru to appear and soon gave the duo instructions. "Go and see if they're finished and report back; I don't want this Hyuuga staying in the compound longer than needed."
The two canines took off into the clan compound without a sound, reappearing several moments later having clearly checked on the situation. "From what we can hear it sounds as though they're finished, however you'll need to take the key." Kuromaru stated, earning a sigh from his partner.
"Well then, I guess it's time to go and drag my son off of your nephew, Hiashi." Tsume smirked, the Hyuuga shuddering visibly at the idea. "You can use your Byakugan to see what they're up to before we go in, so don't worry too much." She laughed, leading the male towards the bunker the two males were currently in.
"Do you think we'll be able to stay here with him for a while? It's nice just lying here in Kiba's arms."
'I hate to admit it, Ookami, but you're right. It's…relaxing to just lie here with him.' The Hyuuga thought contentedly, snuggling back against the taut male's chest.
"…why does it feel like something bad is about to happen?"
'Probably because since you turned up every time I've been happy or relaxed or content something bad has happened. I should probably wake up and prepare for it.' Neji mentally sighed, stirring gently.
"Or just wake up a little and activate our byakugan; you'll have advanced warning on anything that's coming. If it looks likely to take you away, I'm sure Kiba will do anything he can to keep you beside him."
'Fair point.'
Opening his pale eyes a fraction he activated the bloodline trait, letting out a groan at what he saw. Shifting slightly, he heard Kiba grunt and felt the male tighten his grip, causing the Hyuuga to let out a sigh. "Kiba, I think your mother and my uncle are on their way here-"
The Inuzuka was awake with a growl in an instant; sitting upright and pulling the slender male into his lap as he let out a growl. Clawed hands pulled the binding from the Hyuuga's wrists, freeing them for Neji to use. The Hyuuga chose to return the Inuzuka's embrace, the tanned male wrapping a blanket around his slender form.
The click of the lock reached Kiba's sensitive ears, his grip on the Hyuuga tightening as two people approached them. He let out a growl as his mother came into view, golden eyes locking onto the older Inuzuka.
"Kiba, Neji's going home with his uncle; release him." The woman stated; a snarl from the boy the only response she received. "Don't make me drag the two of you apart boy; he has to go home." She snarled, glaring down at her son. The Inuzuka's continued their snarling and growling match, neither wanting to submit.
Neji turned slightly to look at older Hyuuga, their pale eyes catching for a brief moment. Neji let out a relieved sigh as it appeared the older male understood his glance, grasping the woman's arm as she made to move forward and pull the duo apart. "Is there any harm in letting Neji stay a while? The two of them look rather…content."
It was a difficult thing for Hiashi to say; the only child of his twin brother was perched in the lap of a younger Inuzuka and seemed relaxed about the situation. The clan leader knew that things wouldn't turn out any differently; if anything the situation was the only way to keep the boy alive now.
Tsume turned to glare at the Hyuuga, growling slightly until she realised the male was serious. Frowning, she turned back to the two teens, focusing more on the Hyuuga than her son. Seeing the older teen contently embracing the Inuzuka seemed to quell her need to drag the two apart, if only for a moment. "Until everything is official Neji should still be residing in the Hyuuga compound." She reasoned, turning back to Hiashi.
"Is it uncommon for Inuzuka's to have members of other clans stay over?" Hiashi countered, his own attention turning to the woman. "If you'd prefer I can escort them to the Hyuuga compound; there's a few flats at the back of the compound which are currently empty. If only for the night, they could spend some time together there."
Tsume's jaw seemed about ready to drop, though Kiba's already had. "Why would you do that for them?"
"It's more to grind on the nerves of the elders; they still think I should have Neji killed to get rid of the demon." The older Hyuuga stated, smirking slightly.
"She said she'd like to have an opportunity to get rid of them." Neji muttered, smiling lightly as Kiba gently nuzzled his hair.
"Well Tsume, it's up to you. Are they staying here or do we need to pry them apart to get them to the Hyuuga compound, only to allow them to end up in the same position once more?" Hiashi questioned.
The older Inuzuka sighed, looking between the boys and the other clan leader. "I'll submit this time; they can stay here until tomorrow; I expect you here in 24hours to retrieve your nephew, Hiashi."
Two weeks later…
"Ah, I can't believe I'm getting married!" Ookami stated with delight, happily prancing around in the back of Neji's mind as the Hyuuga prodigy brushed his hair.
'You've never been married?' the lilac eyed male questioned, though he didn't stop with his preparations. His uncle would be at the door soon and they'd be heading to the Inuzuka compound for the ceremony, which was, apparently, a slightly altered version of a tradition marriage ceremony. The keyword in that sentence being 'slightly'.
"Nope. Not with all the trying to kill me and me trying to kill the clan in all the past lives. Marriages always managed to be stopped before I could actually be married. It's sad." The wolf didn't sound at all disappointed by the fact she hadn't been married before. Probably due to the excitement bristling through her at the prospect of what the next few hours would bring.
"Neji, it's time to go." Hiashi called from the other side of the door, making the male sigh. His forehead protector was missing and although it seemed a rebellious thing to do, the Hyuuga teen was leaving his forehead uncovered completely. Dressed in a fairly traditional black kimono, Neji glanced over his reflection briefly before sighing and leaving the room. This would be a long morning.
"…and with the power vested in me by the elders of the village, I pronounce these two forever joined in matrimony and the clans forever joined by blood."
With those words Kiba pulled Neji into a tight embrace, claiming the Hyuuga's soft lips. A cheer went up from both sides of the seating arrangement; the Hyuuga's glad to be rid of the demon, the Inuzuka's glad to see their next leader already had his mate.
The Inuzuka seemed unwilling to release his new 'bride', however it became obvious the Hyuuga was getting light-headed from the lack of oxygen and the brunette released his ebony-haired lover, holding him in a gentle hug instead. Neji was content enough to stay in the Inuzuka's arms, even as the wedding guests headed into the reception hall to eat. Tsume and Hiashi remained behind, watching the two curiously.
The Inuzuka seemed eager to keep the Hyuuga in his arms, although Tsume suspected her son would be rather fond of dragging the older teen back to his apartment so they could reacquaint themselves with one another physically. The Hyuuga, meanwhile, seemed rather content with simply being able to be with the Inuzuka and participate in the ceremony, which made the woman frown slightly.
"Is the wolf…?"
"I believe she is; Neji mentioned how excited she was at the prospect of getting married." Hiashi sighed, watching as his nephew and the Inuzuka teen finally headed inside.
"How long has his clan seal been gone?" the Inuzuka clan leader asked finally, after a long period of silence had hung between the two of them.
"Two weeks, give or take. It happened the same night your son marked him; the wolf felt guilty about not being able to stop it, so after the two of them had collapsed out of exhaustion she removed the mark." the Hyuuga leader stated, sighing a little. "Unfortunately that means if Ookami gets out of control your son is the only person who can stand between the Hyuuga clan and utter destruction."
"With any luck that wolf will be kept content enough that that doesn't become a reasonable option in her mind." The Inuzuka agreed, sighing a little. "We may as well join in the festivities; after all, the joining of our clans should be a reason to celebrate."
Nodding the duo finally headed inside after the boys to enjoy the celebration; it wasn't every day that an Inuzuka married a Hyuuga. Indeed, it wasn't every day that a male Hyuuga married another male.
The celebration wound down around midnight, the Hyuuga clan mostly disappearing well before ten, though Hiashi seemed hesitant to leave, if only a little. He trusted the Inuzuka clan to protect Neji as if he was one of their own, in fact they were likely to treat him better than the Hyuuga clan ever had due to his link with their heir.
He watched as the tanned Inuzuka teen led his nephew from the celebration, most of the Inuzuka's still present and enjoying the festivities. Tsume had already informed him that most would remain well into the following morning; the dog-nin clan liked to party, she'd explained.
Sighing, he stood to leave, nodding to the Inuzuka leader as he headed out. 'Take care of him, Tsume. Maybe you'll do a better job of it than I did.'
Tai: You'll be sad to hear that this is the end of the chapter. I know they're normally much longer, however I'm a little OCD and it will bug me if I don't finish this story on either 12 or 15 chapters. Please don't ask why those two numbers; I don't really know.
Anyway, I don't have enough ideas to make it to 15 chapters, so you'll have to make do with the fact this story will be 12 chapters long, much like my FMA story, Dreams. In terms of words, however, this story will be my longest.
Based on reviews so far, although people clearly enjoy the story, I will not be writing a sequel at this stage. This conclusion is based only on what reviewers current feelings on the story are, and my own agreement with said feelings. I love the pairing and the story, however it's becoming difficult for me to write.
However, things may change in the future. I will not state I will never be writing a sequel, because I may have a little too much to drink one night and decide 'why not, let's do it!' and write a sequel, even if it is merely a one-shot. As things currently stand, no sequel will be occurring.
On that note, I leave you to curse my existence in your reviews until I update with the final chapter of To Be Alone. I am intending to put it up on the 7th of April, however if I get swamped with work due around that time I will put it up sooner (possibly later)
Ciao!