Pull The Trigger Chapter 5, a naruto fanfic

Pull The Trigger

Chapter 5

Perhaps two weeks after he fist arrived, Sasuke gets the sad news that he is allowed visits from relatives. Once every Friday is the max for now, but that does mean that he'll get to see Itachi, once a week, which is already too often.

Kakashi tells him this in an indifferent voice one cold day after soccer practice. His mouth is flat but there is something in his eyes that is hard to read. Over these past few days Kakashi has turned out to be quite a complicated individual. He jokes with the boys and goes easy on them most of the time, but then there are some times that he turns cold. All warmth and humor and good nature disappear from his face and he is ruthless, efficient and soulless.

This Kakashi makes them run laps until they can't stand straight anymore, this Kakashi keeps them up all night standing against a wall because one of the boys hid food under his bed. This Kakashi is not loved.

Sasuke takes the news a good as can be expected. Naruto throws him puzzled looks, he says that he's acting weird lately. Sasuke did not realize that he was behaving differently. He tries hard to hide it.

The day that his brother comes to visit the sun shines. The room they occupy is the same one you would find in an adult prison. There are two sides parted by a glass wall. Chairs on both sides, but no phone to talk in. There are little holes in the glass. There is place for 5 people on each side of the room but only one seat is taken by a black boy and what seems to be his mother. In the corner a busted old radio fills the room with a pleasant melody.

The atmosphere is calming and agreeable. The sunshine slips past the high windows and fills his eyes and warms his face. It all horribly turns cold though when his brother takes the chair in front of him.

He doesn't look that much different. He's dressed in a nice suit in stead of the usual, common shirt and trousers. He's cut his hair, it falls just a little below his shoulders now. Overall he actually looks healthier. It's not fair.

'Do you know what happened after you shot me?' He starts to talk.

Sasuke barely shakes his head. The glass between them looks sturdy and this might be the only reason why he can breathe with ease.

'I died for ninety-five seconds.' Itachi says gloriously. Proud of himself.

'You could not kill me, you tried but failed. Admit that I own you.' He says, leaning forward, approaching the glass and locking their eyes.

Summoning up his pride Sasuke looks up too and meets the challenge. He opens his mouth and says:

'Why do you still come? It was supposed to end.'

A little taken back because of the sudden change of personality, Itachi frowns. The light makes him look pale but his face is painted with soft shadows.

'It'll never end. You can't end blood ties. They are eternal.' He replies with the same confidence that Haku possesses when he talks about protecting his precious people.

Sasuke sighs. He's grown a lot these past few months and it shows, he thinks. Because he now realizes what his brother's trying to do. He talks beautifully. He used to always enchant him with words when he was just a little child, and when they got older, after his parents died, Itachi used words to abuse him. He plays the part of a god, something divine, like an angel when really he was, is just a man. He looks up and out the window. A cloud drifts by slowly.

'Don't act like that, like you know what you're talking about. Like you are justified.'

Itachi is taken off balance. You can see that he doubts his own hearing.

'You're not special. You want to be, but you're not.' Sasuke whispers in a soft sincere voice.

'You're just the next fucked-up person, broken by those little white pills of yours. You're no one.'

He's learned a lot from Naruto. The boy's rubbed off on him, and perhaps Haku too. Itachi's face has fallen. He looks grim, and his jaw appears tight, like he's clenched it. He still manages to speak out some words although they don't sound entirely solid.

'I'm still the only one to fuck you.' He whispers. It sounds pampered, hurt like a young child's retort.

'No you're not.' Sasuke says too fast.

He shouldn't have said it. It was impulsive, in the wrong way. For a moment Itachi's face has lost all traces of cool and control, he is awestruck.

'Who are fucking then little brother?'

Sasuke holds his tongue. He immediately averts his eyes, as if he's scared that they won't lie for him. Itachi laughs his little mad-man laugh. Wild and unpredictable.

'Tell me? Who are you with? I'm curious as to who would have you?'

A moment of silence passes by uninterrupted.

'Don't tell me then. I don't need to know. I've gotten permission from your shrink to visit you in privet next time. Isn't that nice? We could have a room to ourselves.'

Sasuke's breath hitches. Suddenly the glass in front of him does not hold that same security that it held before. It's just a wall, one that can be broken. The date is set. All of a sudden this horrible place he's in, that eventually turned out okay has gone up in flames. Bye-bye paradise, shelter, refuge.

Itachi sees right through him and laughs.

'See you next week little brother.'

Naruto starts forward with an intense feeling of worry wrapped around his chest. It's a fear that wild animals must feel in the face of their predators, or maybe more the fear of a mother whose offspring is threatened. It makes him forget all the material trouble and all the surrounding circumstances. He just has to get there fast, fast enough to...

He turns the hallway at a frightening speed, sliding one arm across the corner to cut it off when out of nowhere, a pair of white hands yank him back by the collar and forcefully wrestle him against the wall.

Naruto thrashes, actually growling but stopping when there's a husky sound in his ear.

'Hush fox, I ain't gonna hurt you.'

The voice is Gaara's. He struggles to keep control. Naruto can see that he's gotten taller, perhaps he's even a little taller than Sasuke now.

He pushes the other off him and fixes the ruffles in his shirt. His blue eyes still shoot towards where Sasuke left but he's gotten his breath back now.

'What do you want.'

'Stay here a second. Have a smoke with me, come on.'

'I don't smoke, I told you a million times already.'

'That's fine, I wasn't about to offer you a cig.'

Naruto drops his jaw a little, surprised but then his lips gradually reshape into that curvy smile. He can't help being amused and combs his fingers through his hair, exasperated.

Outside the sun is still out, weekly perhaps, but it's shining. The light hits Gaara's face and lightens his hair. It glows fiery red, but growing black at the roots.

'You need to dye it again.' Naruto says, pointing his finger.

Gaara shrugs once. He lights a cigarette. Naruto wrinkles his nose smelling the heavy smoke and Gaara sees it. He laughs and blows a cloud of smoke right into his face.

'Cut it out.' Naruto says, leaning away and frowning. He forgot how much Gaara liked to tease him.

His back is pressed against the concrete wall and he winces his eyes in the sunlight. His hands are in his pockets, but he makes a uncomfortable impression. He looks sideways, secretly hoping to steal a glance at his former... former what? There are dark circles around Gaara's eyes, black and blue. He's pale and thin. His shoulders are hunched, he looks tired.

'You look bad Gaara. You're having trouble sleeping again.'

Gaara smiles coldly and answers a little too fast.

'I always have trouble sleeping, stupid.'

Naruto shrugs and keeps his mouth shut. He won't say that in those few years ago he never noticed that he did. And all those times that they… whatever. He just remembers that whenever they'd share a room, Gaara always slept, soundly. He was sure of it because secretly he had waited until the other was asleep before finally allowing himself to doze of as well.

'It's your fault.'

Naruto looks at him.

'Me not sleeping I mean. It's your fault.'

Gaara throws his cigarette on the ground, it's not even small yet, but he feels like leaving. Behind him Naruto yells 'why?'.

'Because you left.. And I don't blame you but I will not be pitied. Don't talk to me again.' He answers, loud and clear, without ever turning around.

Naruto wants to follow him but he orders his legs to stay. It's a different time now, and although it hurts and pulls at his heart, it's not real anymore.

It's a memory, that's all.

He sits against the wall biting his nails, wasting his free time. But then the door is opened by a guard and a fragile looking Sasuke steps out.

Naruto immediately rises to his feet. His eyes try to catch their black counterparts but there seems to be somewhat of a wall between them. Sasuke appears to be mentally absent; His face is empty. He's shaking.

'Sasuke.' Naruto says, as if it's the obvious thing to say.'

The boy looks up. He sighs, opens his mouth to speak, but then changes his mind and walks down the hall. Of course he's followed.

Only when it's dark outside and they're supposed to be getting ready for bed does Sasuke tell him what happened. He tells him that he saw Itachi again. He came to visit. And because it was his first visit there had to be a guard present to see what kind of reaction he'd have. So Itachi could not do or say those things that scared him, but they did talk, and the past was certainly there in the room with them. In his brother's eyes, in his words, in the cold hand against the glass.

Naruto can only listen. He is filled with feelings of sorrow and anger, but mostly anger. It tightens his throat and curls up his hands.

That's not what Sasuke needs now though. He needs comfort, and although he usually rejects any feelings of pity he allows for Naruto to grab his arm and whisper something sweet into his ear when no-one's watching.

A noticeable change could be seen in Sasuke's behavior the following days. He looked over his shoulder constantly, could not sit down, and slept barely. His face was pale, not the usual fresh, spring-pale, but more dead-person-pale.

Of course Naruto noticed, and it hurt his heart. He asked, but Sasuke lied. He lied to his psychologist as well, to anybody really. He wasn't even completely truthful with Haku.

Haku had shown an interest in Naruto ever since he arrived. They sometimes wandered of on their own, and when they came back, both were in pensive, silent moods. They could talk without having to say anything. Sasuke at moments felt jealous of the two.

One of these moments took place on a cold Sunday afternoon, at the time that the first snowflakes of the year fell.

The sky looms above them and threatens them with snow and wind and rain. In stead of shivering and seeking warmer places of the courtyard, inside, Haku and Naruto stand in the middle; laughing, mocking the weather.

Sasuke leans against a wall in another far corner, his eyes are fixed on Naruto's moving mouth. Lips are talking, he smiles now and then. Haku is the same but more delicate and subtle, his facial expressions are like those of a porcelain doll, they are hard to catch but beautifully painted on his face.

Then the first snowflakes starts to hit his nose. Sasuke looks up and catches one in his eye. The sky is turbid. A thousand flakes fill up the grayness and gently turn it white. It is perhaps a week from Christmas.

In the middle of the courtyard Naruto emits a delighted sound. He yells something and sticks out his tongue. Haku laughs at him and says something. He moves out his hand a little bit and touches the orange collar of Naruto's winter jacket. Sasuke clenches his teeth.

He sees them tease each other for a while before they start to scuffle and Haku flees before Naruto manages to choke him with his hat. The chase takes about a second, then Naruto catches him and throws him over his shoulder, carrying him around like a trophy. The trophy moans and complains as he's brought up to Sasuke and dropped in front of his feet.

Naruto smiles at him, the genuine one that is reserved for him alone, although now, to Sasuke, it doesn't feel so real anymore. He scowls and hides his face under his hat and hair.

Naruto bends through his knees and looks up into the darkness that hides his face.

'Helloo! Earth to Sasuke.'

He gets no respond. Haku glances from one to the other, you can see that his mind is trying to figure out what's wrong. He might not understand either Sasuke or Naruto but he knows friction when he sees it. These two spark with it, especially when they're near each other. He smiles and makes an excuse, telling them that he's got to leave because he's got clean up duty;

Naruto waits until Haku has disappeared completely before leaning down against the wall next to Sasuke. It's silent for a long while, except for the sound of the falling snowflakes and the protesting trees that have to carry their weight.

'Are you going to tell me why you're pissed or not?' Naruto asks, finally, tired of the heavy silence.

He's had enough of the gloominess, he wants to enjoy the feint layer of snow that has formed over the stones. He feels like dirtying that unblemished carpet of white. His feet start to wander, they carry him towards a high bench, his hands wipes away the snow on top of it and holds it in his palm.

Walking back with a mischievous grin on his face, he stops in front of Sasuke and throws at him his most innocent smile.

'You need to cool off.'

Sasuke exhales sharply as the sentence is followed by a snow filled hand in his face. The ice cold water runs in his jacket and through his scarf, chilling his throat and making him cry out in surprise.

'What the fuck-'

Of course any reaction from Sasuke would be of a violent nature. He grabs the blond boy, who is laughing heartily, using his knees to support his shaking frame, by his collar and flings him to the ground straddling him and making him eat snow.

When they're finally done wrestling snow down holes in clothes, and flinging the ice cold stuff in each other's faces, they rest on the floor and try to clean up a bit.

Naruto wipes a hand over his face to get rid of the snow in his eyebrows while mumbling:

'You are such a kid sometimes.'

'Excuse me?' Sasuke replies with genuine surprise and offence.

'It's true. You sulk like a five year-old.'

'I do not sulk!'

'Yes you do I saw you!'

Sasuke prepares to get up but he's pulled down by Naruto and lands on his but next to him.

'I knew what you were thinking. You don't have to worry.'

Sasuke keeps his mouth shut, but he listens.

'I'd never do that. Haku neither.'

'How do you know that? He likes you a lot. He would do it.' Sasuke mutters.

'No he wouldn't.' Naruto says with all the self-assurance in the world.

'And why not?' Sasuke answers skeptically.

'Because, it's easy, he's in love.'

This takes him off guard a little, so he can't reply. Only after a while can he say:

'How do you know that?'

'Just you know. You can see it. It's kind of obvious. He glows, and he smiles. He's in love.'

Naruto glows and smiles too, Sasuke realizes. He looks at him through the corner of his eye. The hair ruffled and his face is red over tan. He's breathing little clouds. Sasuke wants to catch those clouds with his lips and swallow them, to see if they taste as sweet as they look.

Whoa! He shakes his head. Get the stupid thoughts out of your brain. Sometimes Naruto baffles him, leaves him speechless. He is a child, that's easy to see, but he can say things that you wouldn't expect him to say. In the essentials of life, and in the things that really matter, Naruto is wise, and Sasuke is jealous.

He wants to start pouting but then remembers the comment about sulking and refrains. A sharp glance to his left shows him that Naruto is looking at him. He leans forward and kisses him softly on the corner of his mouth, and then a second time on his mouth, smiling.

'Don't look so surprised.' Naruto says.

That night when he's lying in bed, Sasuke feels so sad he could cry. He actually does, faintly. He just allows one tear to escape his lashes and slide down his cheek. It was supposed to be over. Itachi and everything from before. But Itachi's found a way to outlive him. "Bonds are eternal". He was right, they are. Sasuke tried to break them, using words with Naruto and a bullet with his brother. Both times failed. Both came back. Both love him.

Thursday night. Sasuke is just finishing up in the bathroom. He's standing in front of the mirror, absently washing his hands. His eyes try not to look at his face, but are focused in the dark corner of the room where one of the tubular lights is broken. The little corner of darkness irks him. He does not let it out of his sight, fearing that if he would avert his eyes just one second and then look back, it would have grown a little, eventually threatening to fill the room.

Paranoia.

He's told by his shrink multiple times. It was quite obvious and Sasuke isn't not surprised. He could have worked that out on his own, thank you. What to do with it, that's the question.

He turns around and stares intently at the unlit corner. He doesn't know what holds his eyes there.

Suddenly there's a hand on his shoulder. His heart stops beating in his chest and then the second after that it begins jumping around like a wildebeest. He spins around, clenches one fist around the hand and raises fiercely scared eyes upon the owner of the hand.

'Aah, let go it hurts!' Naruto squeaks, ripping loose his hand and rubbing it with a hurt face.

'Fuck, you didn't have to attack me.' He mutters.

'Don't walk up on me like that.'

Sasuke throws one last glance at the dark corner, then forcibly banishes it from his mind. He quickly finds his bed and pulls up the covers to his chin, counting his breaths. He hears Naruto follow him, still muttering angrily, but instead of hearing the familiar voice stop around 3 meters away, where Naruto sleeps, it stops right beside his own bed, and then there is a heavy presence on his mattress.

Naruto sits down sulking. Sasuke turns on his side, preparing to show his back to him.

Naruto reaches out and turns him back though, and whispers:

'I think it's time you told me what's bothering you.'

He is met with silence.

'I know it's your brother. What'd he tell you? For real.'

Again, there is no reply. But from out on the hallway footsteps come closer. The door opens and a gray eye peeks in.

'Whoever's there, lights off mean bedtime.' Kakashi says.

Naruto ducks his head slightly as if to become less noticeable and continues his monologue in a softer, yet more urgent, whisper.

'Dammit, I want to help. I want to understand, I want to protect you I honestly do. Why don't you let me?'

He sighs when Sasuke still doesn't answer, although you can see that he is wide awake by the tenseness of his posture under the covers.

Naruto prepares to talk again, but is interrupted by a furious yet controlled voice from near the door.

'That's it Naruto, get of your ass. If you won't go to bed now, than not at all. Take your coat and shoes and follow me.'

Naruto sullenly does as he's asked and follows his guard out of the room and out of the hallway, into the cold night air.

Kakashi pushes him down the metal steps and goes back inside, closing the door behind him. Everything is dark and silent, except for the faint light coming from one of the observation towers and the soft humming of the generator on the roof.

Up in the sky clouds can faintly be outlined in the pale glow of the stars and lamppost from outside the high walls. Naruto sighs, shivers and starts to walk down the rest of the steps, sitting down on the last one.

He is frustrated. He feels so helpless it hurts. With his hands in his hair he closes his eyes, hoping that the clear air will cleanse his mind. When he opens them again, there in the distance, just under the high windowsill of the old registration building there is a little glowing dot.

Attracted to the light, much like a moth or any other sort of insect, he rises to his feet and approaches it with caution.

As he gets closer to the source of light, the surroundings become clearer and shadows are pushed back. Among the appearing shapes and colors there are the contours of a face. The glowing dot is the smoldering end of a cigarette, and Gaara is the one who has it between his lips. His pale skin is warmed by the glow, he actually looks healthier than in daylight.

He looks surprised for a second. Takes the cigarette between his fingers and says:

'Hello there fox. Bit late for you to be still awake?'

Naruto nods affirmatively. He rubs his face with his hand.

'It's punishment. I got kicked out…I-' He stops talking because it is obvious that they don't need to share 'Smalltalk' like that.

Gaara nods. He still throws him a curious glance though.

'So why couldn't you sleep?'

'Ah, no reason.' Naruto answers.

The other obviously doesn't believe him and keeps his mouth shut, as if he's waiting for another answer, one more honest. Naruto feels the faint pressure in the silence and answers again.

'I worry. I feel anxious.'

Gaara slides down the wall and pulls the blond next to him.

'You worry about a boy? The skittish one. Dark hair, dark eyes. Not so friendly looking.'

He gets no answer but that's not really necessary because it wasn't really a question. He's seen his friend from a past life deal with the boy. How they talk and argue and how he smiles.

'It's not just a boy.'

'I think he is.' Gaara says, at which he receives a shocked response:

'He is much more! You wouldn't understand, it's…complicated.'

Gaara's lips form into a mocking little smile.

'He's nothing special. You're in love is all. You can't see clear.'

Naruto grows red. His big mouth leaves him to deal on his own, he can't say a word.

'I…, I'm-'

'You used to think I was god as well.' Gaara says and he smiles.

His face lights up and he takes another long drag from his cigarette.

'Ah, you used to think I was everything. I could have done the worst things to you and still have you kissing my feet.' He says.

Naruto feels a little sick.

'You were never bad to me.' He says to Gaara who finally shuts his mouth at this statement.

No he was never bad to him even though could have been. The truth is, he was just as much a slave in the game as Naruto was. At that time he really needed someone like Naruto. When he thinks back at those memories now he realizes that they are some of the lightest periods in his life. In his fast darkness of memories and times spent there are only a select few good ones, those spent with Naruto are among them.

'You just need to realize that this boy that you're crushing on, is just as human as the rest of us.'

Naruto lets those words sink in, they stir in his mind. Suddenly he smiles.

'You're right.' He says.

When the sun rises he's stiff and cold, but in his mind he feels cleansed. These new lucid thoughts in his head have developed because of Gaara's words. So when Kakashi lets them back in the next morning, Naruto flashes Sasuke a sweet smile. He understands now that they are both very scared and confused at times.

He understands now that with all his flaws, and he's got many, Naruto still loves him. That's right, 'loves him'.

It's Friday and Naruto's excited. Lessons end early today because of Christmas, there is a fancy meal in the evening and ice-cream for desert, besides he's got something to tell Sasuke.

Together with all the other kids from there little green 'bedroom' they walk towards the bigger building where the classrooms are. Naruto lags behind purposely and when Sasuke walks by him he reaches out and pulls him back subtly by his jacket.

'Hey' He says, a little nervous but with a wide smile.

Sasuke's eyes are a little red and there is something wrong with his mouth. His entire face looks upset. Only more encouraged Naruto leans forward.

'Merry Christmas Sasuke.'

'It's not Christmas yet.' Sasuke replies, he already sounds more relaxed.

'That's okay. I've already got a present for you.'

Sasuke raises his eyebrows. How on earth could Naruto have gotten him a present in this place?

'What is it?'

'Do you want to have it now?' Naruto says, his eyes are shining, he's obviously enjoying this.

Sasuke looks at him pointedly.

'Alright, okay, listen up. My present to you, is a favor.'

'A favor?'

'Not just any, I'm talking about a really big favor! Honestly anything you want, I don't care who I've got to kill to get it.' He smiles proudly.

'Really, I'll get to you anywhere you are if you need me. Anytime. Even if I'm eighty I'll still come running!'

Sasuke looks into his eyes. He never gotten a lot of presents before. When he was a child perhaps, but it was different then. This is just. He feels like crying and laughing. He doesn't need all that, he doesn't need pledges and promises, he doesn't need fancy words or to be wooed, he wants what's here in front of him. Naruto. Just always, only him. Though saying this would ruin Naruto's fun in the game. So instead of saying what he thinks he smiles.

As rare as it is, Sasuke's smiles are beautiful, like a flower which has not fully blossomed yet but is brimming with potential. He never smiles big, showing teeth and tongue like Naruto does, his smile is precious.

Naruto appreciates it. His heart is warm, all bad feelings forgotten. He's in love.

It's getting late in the afternoon., almost seven. Naruto is walking over the courtyard, the heavy eyes of a guard pressing the back of his neck. He's a little restless, doesn't know why yet.

'Haku, have you seen Sasuke?' He asks.

'It's Friday right? Doesn't he have a visitor usually?'

Naruto nods, smiles and excuses himself. He walks along the red brick of the registration office, and peeks through the windows. The visitors-room is in there. One door opens inside. Out of the door comes some warm light, people exit and the last one turns the light of.

That's strange, Naruto thinks as he approaches the door. One of those people should have been Sasuke. It's almost time for dinner, where is he? The outer door opens, a guard steps out and moves towards the gate while going through his pockets in search of a cigarette. He leaves the door open. Completely unaware of his legs Naruto moves forward until the warmth from inside caresses his face. There is the sound of angry fingers ticking away at a computer keyboard. In the far corner he sees a hallway. There is one door made of glass and then four others before the hallway turns around a corner.

Empty rooms.

Visitor.

Itachi.

Empty rooms.

Things say click in his head.

The images of Sasuke looking over his shoulder, of him tapping his hand on the table nervously, of his anxious face flash through his mind.

There no second of hesitation. Naruto enters the outer door, dead calm but for his wild eyes. The angry ticking stops but he doesn't look over.

He runs over to the glass door, throws it open and sprints down the hallway. He's almost round the corner when he crashes in to a guard in front of him. They both fall down together and Naruto's hand touches the cold gun strapped to the guards belt. He rips it of and jumps up again, faster than he's ever done in his life.

His heart is pounding so fast it hurts. His entire body is electrified. He leaps forward and practically runs over another dazed cop that is supposed to hold him out of the hallway. The corridor feels eternal when he's running through it. The white walls go on forever, but all of it really passes in just a few seconds. His eyes shoot from one door to the other before he finally realizes he's reached the right one. With a power beyond his comprehension he kicks open the door, ramming it with his shoulder at the same time and violently stumbles in. His hands still clenched tight around the cold handle of the gun.

It's like the weapon is guiding his hands, he automatically raises it up and aims the lethal part towards the black figure against the opposite wall.

He doesn't know what he's doing. No, he does know. He feels it, all too clearly. His index finger curling tightly and then the sharp click in the silence before the bang. It all feels unreal.

After that the sound of heavy breathing dominates the room. His own heart is raging like a wild animal inside his head and chest, but there's also a sob from the other end of the room.

The black figure divides itself into two. One smaller, pressed against the wall, and one tall, looming one that is crashing to the floor.

The actual fall must have taken less than a second but it seems like the scene is slowed down. The figure drops to its knees and leans forward a little bit before finally swaying and falling over to the side.

Naruto's eyes rip themselves away from the defeated shape and fix themselves upon the face of his love.

Black strands of hair covering part of his cheeks and forehead like a dark lace veil. Two perfect half-moon shapes of downcast eyes dominating the pale face. One shimmering tear mark adorning the left cheek, like a pale track of diamond. Beneath that a wide mouth, tensed and grim, shaped in a bitter frown. The rest of Sasuke's body slumped, leaning on the wall for support. One hand behind his back, fist clutching something desperately. The other hand keeping up unbuttoned trousers.

Naruto tries to speak but chokes on his words. He can only gasp breathlessly before the heavy impact of a police officer colliding with his back brings him to the floor. He falls hard on his elbows and strains his wrist in an awkward position, but all the time his eyes do not leave Sasuke's face.

There is a commotion in the corridor now. Naruto is roughly held to the ground, but he's still wrestling to get up. The police officer that has him in his grasp twists his arms and cuffs his hands behind his back.

At the same time other officers have arrived and some have made it into the room where they can see what's happened. They don't talk, only the ones in the corridor do. Among these impersonal and hostile faces there is only one familiar. Kakashi's scarred eyes have taken in the scene. He approaches Sasuke holding out his hand, like he's some beast to be tamed.

Sasuke looks up and his face is completely broken. For once there is nothing of the wall there usually is. The hand that was hidden behind his back drops. Only a few of the officers, Kakashi among them, can see the shimmer, and hear the sound of a small knife being dropped to the floor.

Sasuke, looks down at his feet, at the knife, he wasn't helpless.

One word, sound actually: Uggh. That's exactly what I felt when writing this chapter. Being distracted by things like TWILIGHT OMG, seen it twice already, waiting for fourth book to come! Anywo, it was DAMN hard. But now that this is done, I get to go on with the story :) I've got big ideas!