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constellations
(landsailor)
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It is with a formal bow, eyes focused on Kakashi's shoes, that she says goodbye. He places a fond hand on her head, and accepts the headband she hands him in return. "I'll be back," she promises.
His gaze is proud when he follows it up with, "You'd better."
The blistering wind is dry and cold, raking along her cheeks until they're red. It does not let up until they are safely out of Snow, passing through the rocky, moss covered base of the mountain chain in an eastward direction towards Lightning. They travel in a comfortable silence interspersed with bits of conversation, but there is something about the air between them that feels natural.
They run through the night, finally stopping as the horizon grows pink in a little village on the base of the mountainside, a scant few hours from their destination. The young family running the bed and breakfast is welcoming, and Sakura heals their son of his pesky bruises as a token of her appreciation before sluggishly trudging towards their shared room.
"It's the least I could do," she shrugs. The boy's mother beams, and it reminds Sasuke of all the reasons he wanted to redeem himself.
There is an ambiance that follows Sakura wherever she goes, one that he is sure was not with him prior to her accompaniment on his travels. People open up to her. She is springtime, and they are buds she pries apart simply by being. On the off chance they recognize her trademark pink hair and gawk over the stories that follow her—much better than the nightmares that follow him—she gains friends, favors, and free knick knacks in the process.
It is a talent he knows he will never acquire, and he cannot help but be envious.
Even so, when she shops around in the small market for a sweater, her playful gaze as she puts on a silly vest is all for him. Her knuckles brushing his as they walk along the dimply lit roads later in the evening, the whispers in the middle of the night—these, he thinks, he cannot bring himself to regret.
Still, she packs like this is a reprieve, a getaway, gathering trinkets in her pockets and taking silly photos in photo booths with him. She insists that they do at least some sightseeing, because the world is too big to not have experienced all it has to offer.
Her face lights up when she talks about Konoha, when she says the word home. The months apart, the years he's been gone, have only served to bind her closer to it, and as much as she says that he is everything, he does not believe it.
For her, home is out there, miles away behind a forest of leaves, dappled in sunshine. For him, it is in her arms.
The weeks pass, and finally it becomes something he cannot deny any longer: she does not belong here.
Things are good for them, in spite of it all. There is no doubt that she is there for him when there is a chance to repent, the two of them praying side by side in a small shrine. She is proud when he catches petty thieves and returns stolen goods, and her smile is warm when he does simple deeds like picking up litter.
They train together in the foggy mornings, share quiet meals, and kiss like it's a habit.
He looks at her like she's a dream.
And perhaps she is, because he knows. He knows it is only a matter of time until she wants to leave, before she asks him to come back with him.
And he does not know how he will tell her no.
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notes: nothing tickles my fancy more than full circles, I think