Define Destiny

A/N: Well, something was brought to my attention last chapter by a reviewer: I forgot to put in Hinata's stutter. I thought ' I'm so stupid!' but then I realized that going back and adding it now would kind of take away the angst-y mood. Please bear with me when I make mistakes like that. Let's just say she had an off day and forgot to stutter. But never fear! Hinata's back with her stutter in this chapter!

Yes, this chapter was kind of late since I had writer's block... I kept on deleting what I had written because it all sucked. I hope this chapter is acceptable. I'm rather happy with how it came out. Remember to review!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Hinata, or any other character.

Chapter 3

She couldn't breath. She just couldn't.

Her lungs were not taking in enough air and any minute now she would lose consciousness and pass out, making a fool of herself.

The maid helping her dress, although she didn't need it, tightened the obi of her kimono more and she drew in a jagged breath, close to sounding like a gasp.

"There you are," murmured the maid. "You look beautiful, Hinata-sama." She stepped away, admiring the girl.

Hinata turned around to face the mirror and struggled to keep her emotionless face in place. She looked like an entirely different person, like someone full of confidence and dignity. But she was actually trembling beneath all those layers of fabric.

Her bangs framed her pale face. Her hair was half up in a simple style, a white lily entangled in the curls. The kimono she wore was a light blue with images of cherry blossoms all along the bottom half. The obi was a light green, tied in the back in a complex knot. She took a few steps back, hearing the dull 'clunk' the wooden sandals she was wearing made on the floor. Despite herself, a tiny smile graced her features.

Then it faded as she remembered the reason she was so dressed up.

She was going to attend a Hyuga clan meeting with her father.

The Hyuga Elders were all going to be there, along with several representatives of the Branch Family. They were going to discuss giving the Branch Family more freedom, she believed. A sigh escaped her and her eyes focused on the image in the mirror. She noted that the maid was gone and flushed. I was probably too deep in thought to notice.

She was reaching up rather stiffly to adjust the flower in her hair when there was a knock on the door. Her arm jolted and hit the lily. It moved completely out of place and looked ready to fall from her hair. A squeal burst from her mouth, a reflex that she had when she was surprised.

"Hello?" The voice on the other side of the door was muffled; she couldn't identify the speaker.

"Uh, I'm c-coming!" she answered. Hinata shuffled over to the door, struggling to keep herself in perfect condition and failing. She slid open the door and found herself face to face with her cousin. "Um, h-hello, Neji-nii-san," she said.

"Hello, Hinata-sama," he responded. "I was just coming to get you but it seems you aren't ready." There was the hint of a smirk hovering upon his lips.

"W-well, I had a bit of a p-problem."

"I can see that."

He stepped into the room. She bit her lip and closed the door behind them. Her father probably wouldn't like a man, much less Neji, in her room but she couldn't find enough energy to care at the moment. She just wanted to go train with her team. She didn't want to go to the stupid meeting!

She gasped. "The meeting!"

"Don't worry about it," said Neji. He reached up to take the flower out of her hair. "They postponed it for half an hour."

Hinata let out a breath of relief and visibly relaxed. "T-thank you," she mumbled, referring to the flower.

He nodded. That was when she fully took in his appearance.

Neji was wearing traditional Hyuga robes; similar to the ones he wore regularly. His long, dark hair was tied back by a white band, a few strands loose and framing his face. He looked nothing like the ruthless ninja he was supposed to be.

"A-are you going to the meeting?" she asked, sitting down on the small chair in front of her mirror uncomfortably. The kimono rose up so she looked big and the edge was up to her knees. Now, it would get wrinkled. Ugh, nice going, Hinata. She thought.

Neji sat across from her on another stool. "Yes, I am. I thought you would feel better if I was also there."

She smiled her shy smile. "Thank you, Neji-nii-san."

He shrugged it off as it were nothing. "Besides, they are discussing a rather important topic."

Unconsciously, her nose wrinkled. "How long w-will the meeting take?"

He sighed. "I have no idea."

"H-have you ever been to one?"

"Never."

"Oh,"

She placed her elbows on her knees, her head resting in her hands. She was careful not to poke her hair. "I f-feel like they're g-going to tear me to pieces," she paused, attempting to compose herself. "It's like I'm not going to be good enough." she whispered. The last sentence was not meant for Neji's ears but he heard anyways.

"Why would you not be good enough?"

"I'm so w-weak. I haven't even f-fully developed my Byakugan. I can't do anything right and I a-almost always mess up." she mumbled. Tears rose in her eyes.

"None of that is true." said Neji. "You are a very kind person. And to tell you the truth, I believe you would make a good head of the family. You would certainly warm up the place."

Her tears spilled. Her cousin had never been so kind and she found herself unable to fully adapt. Those words were so foreign coming out of his mouth yet she wanted to believe them herself.

Hinata knew crying was a mistake. Her makeup would start running. She sniffled and tried to stem the flow of tears to no avail. "I'm s-sorry. I'm so s-stupid to start crying." She looked up to find a handkerchief in front of her. Neji was handing it to her. She caught sight of the sympathetic look on his face and her tears began to stop.

She wiped them away and was dismayed to see the smear of makeup on it. "Great, now look at what I've done. I'm an e-emotional wreck."

Just then a servant passed by in the hall, announcing that the meeting was going to start. Hinata felt panic bubbling up in her chest. If she messed this up, her father would be furious. She spun on the chair to face the mirror, assessing the damage done. She reached for the gloss only to be stopped by Neji.

"Hinata-sama, calm down."

She nodded, taking in a deep breath. "O-okay…" With trembling hands she reapplied her makeup. In minutes she was looking like a doll again. She stood, smoothed out her kimono, and made her way to the door, Neji following close behind.

They paused on the threshold. He held his arm out to her and she linked hers with his. Hinata flushed at the close contact with him, her blush deepening when servants stopped to stare.

"Is this s-so unusual, Neji-nii-san?" she muttered.

"I don't think so. I'm simply your escort." he replied, shooting a particularly obvious maid a cold glare. The young woman dashed away, her head bowed.

They arrived at the meeting room. Low talking was heard in the hallway. She tensed and bit her lip, nervous. Neji gently took his arm from hers and whispered, "Stop that and walk in with your head held high. Don't look them in the eyes and try not to stutter." With that said, he opened the door, no warning given, and softly shoved Hinata inside.

She almost stumbled but caught herself in time, dropping to a bow in seconds. She heard the door close behind her and sensed Neji as he also bowed down a few feet behind her. The talking had stopped; all eyes were on them. Her breath hitched in her throat and a small sound escaped her lips. Fortunately, it was just as one of the Elders spoke, so it wasn't heard.

"You both may rise." said Hyuga Hikari. Her eyes never left them even as they moved to sit next to Hiashi. She was one of the Elders, dressed splendidly in a golden kimono.

As Neji helped Hinata settled herself, whispering to her all about formalities, she spoke again. "It's so nice to see you again, Neji-kun." Her tone was falsely caring and kind. "I'm so happy to see you helping Hinata-chan fit in."

The other four Elders nodded their approval; completely blind to the way Hikari spoke. She was a goddess among them; no one had the guts to stand up to her. A smirk appeared on her face. Even though the boy didn't bat an eyelash, Hikari saw a muscle in his jaw twitch.

"Yes, Hikari-sama," replied Neji calmly. "It is nice." He glanced at her from his seat, the ghost of a smirk upon his lips. Hers faded into a scowl. The impudent whelp had actually looked at her! People from the Branch Family were not allowed to do that. But she reigned in her temper, her attention diverted to the shy girl next to him.

Hikari opened her mouth to address Hinata but was interrupted by Hiashi.

"Why don't we start the meeting now?" he prompted. She shot him a sharp glance only for him to ignore her. He was very protective of his daughter, more than he showed. She shifted into a more comfortable position and filed away that fact for future use.

She was a scheming woman, to say the least. She certainly hadn't been happy when they made the decision of Hinata becoming the next family head. She wouldn't be as easy to manipulate as her sister. She had her friends who would, no doubt, advise her.

"We have gathered here to discuss matters related to the Branch House," began an Elder. "We have been thinking that they need more freedom in offering opinions in Hyuga issues and such."

Murmuring began. The people gathered before the Elders were of important status in the family. Hiashi frowned at the response they were getting. Not a lot seemed to agree.

Hinata frowned and looked around the room. This seemed to be a boring meeting. She hoped it would end soon. She glanced at Neji. He too seemed bored already. He knew that his opinion did not count in this meeting. He didn't feel like wasting his breath. She sighed and focused her eyes on the floor. She seemed to have spaced out because when she came to, her name was being called.

"Uh, I am s-sorry," she struggled to speak. "I wasn't paying a-attention."

"It's alright, Hinata-chan," said Hikari. "It happens to most." There was an underlying tone of malice to her voice. Hinata flushed at her words. She felt inferior to her.

"We wanted to know what you thought of giving the Branch House more freedom and less punishment for mistakes."

Neji tensed beside her. Hinata knew that what she answered would dictate whether she was eaten alive, theoretically speaking, or accepted as the Hyuga heiress.

Hinata was opening her mouth to speak when the door slid open. A young woman with brown hair in two buns was revealed. She was obviously a ninja, a shuriken holster strapped to her thigh, a pouch hung on her waist. A grin appeared on her features when her eyes landed on Neji and Hinata.

A flustered maid came to a halt behind her. "I'm sorry, Hiashi-sama! She just burst in here, demanding to see Neji-sama and Hinata-sama. I told her she couldn't but she didn't listen!" The maid looked close to breaking down, tears shimmering in her eyes.

"Hokage-sama urgently requested that Neji and Hinata be brought to her." said the girl. She wasn't fazed by the importance of the people in the room.

"Where are the documents?" Hikari asked.

The girl didn't even flinch. "She was in a hurry."

Hiashi sent the maid off, after reassuring her several times that she had not lost her job. "How long will it take?"

She sighed, obviously getting tired with the interrogation. "I don't know. Why don't you go ask the Hokage herself?"

Neji stood up abruptly. "May we go, Hiashi-sama?"

The head of the family found that he could not refuse and nodded. Neji motioned for Hinata to follow. They both left, closing the door behind. The talking resumed almost immediately. The trio walked in silence. Once they were outside, far away from prying ears and eyes, the messenger burst into laughter. They came to a stop.

A smirk, close to one of triumph, appeared on Neji's face. Hinata raised an eyebrow. "D-did you plan this, Neji-nii-san?"

"This is Tenten, Hinata-sama," said Neji. The girl had stopped laughing and was leaning slightly on Neji, trying to catch her breath. "Don't you remember? She's from my old team. She's also my training partner."

Realization dawned on her. "Oh! I'm s-sorry. I knew you seemed familiar. I just haven't seen you in a while."

Tenten shrugged. "That's what happens when the Hokage decides you're too lazy and gives you way too many missions. You don't have time for yourself." Hinata smiled.

"You were just in time back there, Tenten." Neji said.

"Yes, you were." agreed Hinata. She left out how she felt as though she was going to die if she answered wrong. But Neji knew that, judging by the look he sent her.

"Shouldn't we change?" Hinata asked. She purposely changed the subject. She really didn't feel like discussing the meeting.

Neji shook his head. "No. If the Hokage called us we wouldn't have time to change. Just stay like that for a few hours. By then it'll be safe to come back."

She nodded. There they parted and went their separate ways. She watched as her cousin and Tenten walked away. A smile slid onto her face. It was so obvious that the girl cared for him. But Neji didn't seem to care, that idiot. If she could gather up enough courage, she would talk to him about her one day.

She practically ripped off the obi, leaving only a flimsy layer holding her kimono closed. She flung it behind a bush and left the Hyuga compound. That had been a very expensive part of her kimono. She paused, wondering how they would react when they found out. She shrugged and left.

Hinata found herself walking in the park, surrounded by green trees. The atmosphere was peaceful and strangely calming. She caught sight of a patch of flowers and made her way to them. She bent over and gently took one. She brought it up to her face and inhaled its sweet scent.

"Hinata-chan!"

The shout startled her. The quiet of the park was gone. Birds flew out of the trees, also surprised, disturbed by the noise. She whirled around. An orange blur was racing towards her. She was engulfed in a gigantic bear hug that sent them both flying.

They landed on the soft grass. She was in shock, tense in the person's arms. She looked up and her eyes met a pair of twinkling cerulean ones. His smile was infectious. She couldn't help letting one appear on her lips.

"Naruto-kun…" she breathed.

And she snaked her arms around his torso, returning his embrace.