A/N: Will this make much sense? Probably not... it was supposed to be a full story... but then that never happened.

Windsake- (prologue)

The wind blew cold against her skin, making a chill run down her spine as she fought to contain the shivers that racked her body; the thin layers of her dress did little to protect her from the onslaught of the breeze. Walking slowly along the frigid edge of the gondola, she reached a small pale hand down to the railing, letting her soft skin glide across the ragged edges as she traced the worn lines carved into the wood. Left, right, left, she paced her fingers along its curves.

The sky was still a murky haze of blue and grey, and the clouds were looming over the large estate like a blanket of darkness. It was slightly drizzling, like a fine powered mist that clung to the air. The droplets of rain latched onto her, making small crystal beads that hung to her body and sparkled as the sliver light of the night sky danced off the cream ivory of her skin. The pale glow of the moon hung ethereally in the jaded sky, covered by the thin wisps of cloud, and it casted a bluish halo around her figure. Her midnight hair, usually smooth and cascading behind her back, was wet and held in a messy bun with the yellow ribbon holding the hair up dangerously loose. Closing her eyes, she tilted her head up slightly, letting the cool droplets hit her face.

"Here you are." A deep voice erupted from behind her.

She turned around slowly, her face still tilted up, as the heavy sound of footsteps padded closer to her. Opening her eyes slightly, she placed a pale hand on her forehead to stop the rain from attacking her eyes. Seeing the man in front of her, she let her lips curve upward in a small, wistful smile. He was making his way towards her, slowly, but with an air of determination and a burning look in his eyes.

He was tall, much taller than her petite frame, but with a muscular body that could make all the court ladies swoon. Thinking of it, she couldn't help her eyes from travelling to his body. The rain had made his clothes tight, and the soaked fabric hung to his chiseled muscles like a second skin. The dark navy coat, accentuated his broad shoulders, but the white tunic underneath highlighted his light complexion. Seeing his less than modest appearance, a small heat flushed into her face, and she tilted her head slightly down so he could not see the blush that was threatening to overcome her features.

"You're late." It wasn't a question. He was stating the obvious. His tone was dark and brooding, with a hint of annoyance, but she could detect a soft overlay of concern laced in his words. She gave him a small sheepish smile as she turned back to look at his expression.

Stony.

Cold.

She shivered. His face was set in a tight grimace, and she absently noticed the way his knuckles whitened around the hilt of his sword.

"I never thought you would be one to care much for time." She asked, teasingly with a small gleam in her eyes.

"I don't-" she raised a brow at this "- but, you know Father." He finished simply and turned away from her.

"I guess you're right." Sighing, she let the smile drop from her face. "What is it this time…..Uchiha-san?"

"No." Came the sudden reply. He gave her a leveled gaze as she widened her eyes in surprise. He continued with a lighter tone, a small glint of amusement in his voice "…Not Uchiha-san..." he trailed off.

"But then what should I call you…?" Her brows knitted up in confusion.

Sighing, he let a pale hand run through his disheveled hair as he breathed heavily through his nose. She was quite stubborn wasn't she? Closing his eyes, he fought back a small smile. No matter how much he asked, she never ceased to address him with such formality.

Just once, he thought, call me Sasuke. Just Sasuke.

"Then…. How about Uchiha-kun?" She asked, her lips forming an adorable pout as she tilted her head slightly to one side. She let a small smile grace her lips again. Seeing as how that was the closest he was going to get for her to drop the formality shit, he gave a slight curt nod.

"Hyuuga-sama… we know each other far too long for you to still call me Uchiha-san," or even kun… he added mentally.

She bit her lips and glanced accusingly at him for the usage of her family name. Taking her hand of the railing, and wrapping one arm around her waist, she glanced up at him through lidded eyes. Far too long. We've known each other far too long. Shaking the sadness and hurt out of her mind she gave him the best stern face she could muster. "Then Uchiha-kun…no Hyuuga-sama as well." She chided good naturedly, hoping her slight smile would ease the tension.

He gave her a small smirk. "Then Hinata-sama." His smirk grew at the sight of her immediate pout. Two could play at that game.

She gave a small huff. He could be so stubborn at times. So very stubborn. Just like…like father. The mirth disappeared from her face as she focused on their earlier conversation before their small banter. Turning to him, all amusement gone, "What did father want?" she asked softly. Her voice was light, but heavy all the same with a sort strange fatigue he couldn't quite discern. Hearing the tiredness in her tone, his eyes narrowed slightly. He wanted nothing more than to ease all the burdens on her shoulders.

"He requires your presence…." He paused as he saw her eyes widened "for what exactly, I do not know."

She stared at him for a second longer, searching his eyes for any sign of falseness. He averted them away. Sighing, she couldn't help feel a twinge of hurt stab her heart. All this time, he still couldn't trust her. But rather than pressing him for answers, answers she knew he would deny and maybe even outright refuse, she nodded, a small tilt of the head in understanding, before turning away to face the cool serene rippling of the water, her back against him. It was her silent cue for him to leave.

Looking at her with hardened eyes, he wavered. A part of him wanted to stay. To stay, grab her and pull her into his arms so that he could feel her against his embrace. Before he realized it, his hand was already outstretched, ready to pull her away, to runaway, and never come back. His lips turned up in a bitter smile as he retraced his thoughts. To runaway? It was a pleasant dream. But a dream nonetheless. They could never runaway. They had duties that required their presence, loyalties and promises that they could not break. They could not just get up and give away everything. And even if they could, what made him think that she would be willing to, he thought. What made him think that she would be willing to with him? The near thought of that was absurd. No matter how much he wished to tangle his fingers into her luscious midnight raven locks, or mold his body against her, or just hold her close, he would never do it. But he wanted to. Oh, Gods knew how much he wanted to. But he could never be so cruel. And with that bitter thought, he snapped his hand back, and reprimanded himself for such foolishness. Before he could make any more mistakes, and get too close, he abruptly turned on his heel, eager to get away. He lingered for a second longer before tightening his grip on the sword and stalked off into the compound of the estate once more.

She would hear the soft patter of his footsteps until they dimmed into a fainting echo, leaving her to the solitude of the wind.

Silently, she touched the rotten wood once more, ingraining its harsh texture into her memories and smiled ruefully. She would not see it again for a while. Perhaps more. Perhaps eternally. Left, right, left, she whispered, barely a breath of voice and trailed the tips of her fingers across the jagged scar of her wrist. Time had worn the unsightly blemish to a soft puckered abrasion, but the smooth unusual texture of the mark still comforted her. Taking a small breath, she gently pulled the ribbon from her hair, letting the dark, glossy strands float freely in the breeze.

"It is time then".

A/N: That sounded so much better in my head.. *sighs* I had completely planned this one entirely out... then wrote the prologue (sometime ago)...and yeah. I'm not sure what happened. So, instead of letting it rot somewhere off in my computer, I decided to add it to this series in hopes that maybe it might motivate me to continue with it one day.

So for the most part, Essences will contain short (probably) unrelated works, one-shots, and/or otherwise random pieces of fluff that I randomly make. But seeing how short Vanilla Cream was..it might have a second installment...maybe.

Anyway thank you for reading!