Good morning sunlight
As I get used to you
It's all gonna be all right
I did all I can do
And as I'm waiting for those eyes
To say what's on your mind
I finally think I've found the words to say...

So baby don't move at all
Cause you're about to break my fall
Stay where you are, staring at the stars
Don't ever move at all

-Butch Walker, "Don't Move"

If anyone had told Kakashi that he would be married, he would've laughed in their face.

He had decided long ago that he would end his family line with himself. Clan life was no fun, especially when you were the only one of your family left, and the burden of being a Hatake was a task too heavy on the soul. Generations of greatness and failure rested on his shoulders—had for years—whittling and wearing him down, and he told himself he would never let another person experience that pain.

But that was before the incident. The rape had changed everything—thrown a wrench in his well-made plans—and if his former self had a look at him, he'd say a wrench in his brain—because he had gotten married…to Sakura.

Shocking, isn't it? Tsunade was shocked too when they arrived at her office the day after Sakura had found her former sensei at the memorial stone.

Flashback

"You wanna what?"

"We want to get married," Kakashi repeated slowing his word to ensure his meaning was not misunderstood.

Tsunade stared at the two standing before her in shocked astonishment, blinking a few times to reassure herself that this was indeed Hatake Kakashi and Haruno Sakura and not any other couple. But this assurance did little to settle Tsunade as she flipped the stacks of paperwork over and checked the date on her sake bottle. No, it should still be good, meaning that this was no trick of her mind—and it was certainly not a prank from Naruto because even that idiot wouldn't stoop to this kind of a low—and that this was in fact, a very sober reality.

"Why?" The question had been asked before she could stop herself, and she gnawed at her thumb—half in punishment, half in trying to keep herself occupied as they gave her an answer.

Kakashi's reply was the embodiment of him, "we believe it is in the best interests of our future child."

Tsunade eyed him skeptically. That answer was too easy and too close to what he might think she'd want to hear. She knew he was hiding something from her. They both were. Tsunade turned to Sakura.

"Is this true?" she asked, cradling her chin on the backs on her fingers, "is there no other reason that you two want to be married?"

"No, shishou," Sakura replied calmly.

A skeptical hum vibrated in Tsunade's throat. "Are you sure? Though wanting a stable family life for a child is understandable, you are getting married, Sakura. Granted, marriage has a less significant meaning than before and divorces are quite easy to come by, even in our village, but still…this is a big decision, Sakura-chan. And before you stop me, I'd like you to know I am not only asking this as your Hokage, but also as your friend. Now I'd like to repeat my question: is there no other reason that you two want to be married?"

Sakura looked up at Kakashi, whose gaze was as unreadable as ever, but his hand squeezed hers reassuringly. Nodding slightly, she turned her head and swallowed before replying.

"I love him, shishou."

It was soft-spoken and sincere, Sakura's gaze unwavering as she stared at her teacher who stared back with equal intensity.

"Sakura, are you sure about—"

"I am," she interrupted, voice resolute. Her gaze still had yet to break.

Tsunade broke it first and slowly closed her eyes. "And do you agree that you were not coerced in your decision in any way?"

"Yes."

"And you understand the terms you are about to undergo?"

"Yes."

"And you find them entirely agreeable to your person?"

"Yes."

Tsunade held Sakura's gaze, and then fell back into her chair with a sigh. "It seems like there's nothing I can do then." With another sigh, she reached into a drawer and produced a paper. "Sign your names on the line, then come back another day to add yourself to his family registry."

The two stared at the blonde woman in surprise. "You mean—"

Tsunade nodded at her apprentice. "You're telling Naruto and Sasuke, though. And don't tell them here. The last thing I need is someone to be wrecking my office," she told them before looking out of the corner of her eye, "what are you gawking at, Hatake?"

The silver-haired man blinked, startled. "Just that…"

"You never expected me to say yes so easily?"

Kakashi rubbed the back of his neck. "Truth be told…yes," he admitted. "You seemed so adamant, so why…"

Tsunade snorted indelicately, "You know how stubborn Sakura is. And I repeat: 'The last thing I need is someone to be wrecking my office.'"

End flashback

Maybe his former self was correct in its assessment. Maybe there was something wrong with him. Never before had he been so impulsive as to get married—much less to someone he had such a strained relationship to—but maybe that was just part of being in love, the urge to be impulsive.

It hadn't been too bad though. They had been married two months now, and aside from the occasional squabble, everything was fine. In fact, being married seemed almost banal now that Sasuke and Naruto weren't angry at their impulse marriage, but it was an enjoyable kind of banality. The days were long, predictable, and encased in a glowing warmth. The only thing he could think of as being remotely strange was how quiet Sakura was now, but maybe that was another thing that had changed in her. And who was he to question how she coped. But other than that, it was almost like a dream how well things were going.

Kakashi walked up the steps to their shared home. They had agreed to live at Sakura's since her place was larger than his. The moving had taken less than a day, and though he sometimes thought of his old apartment—despite its size, it was still the place he had called home for most of his life—he preferred his life with Sakura. Oddly enough, married life made him very happy.

"I'm back!" Kakashi called out, slipping off his sandals in the entryway before placing the milk in the refrigerator. Straightening himself, he noticed how quiet it was in the house.

'Has she fallen asleep again?' Kakashi wondered. Now in her sixth month, she had trouble sleeping and was prone to napping throughout the day.

Walking to their shared bedroom in the back of the house, Kakashi nudged open the door expecting to find Sakura curled up in bed…only to find the bed and everything else in the room in a state of disarray. The bottles and photos Sakura kept on the vanity she had bought a few months earlier were broken and scattered on the floor. The mirror was broken, and the contents of the dresser were spilling out; from the bookshelf, the tomes of Sakura's medical dictionaries lay smashed atop one another with the top one splattered with what appeared to be blood. The scene was alien to him, and he stared inquisitively at it, unable to process what had happened. A breeze ran across his skin and he noticed the window was open. The window was rarely open nowadays since Sakura had become sensitive to the cold. Kakashi had not cared either way.

Despite a voice in the back of his mind needling at him that he should not disturb a crime scene, Kakashi walked over to the window and grabbed the two handles. Perhaps it was to add a sense of normalcy, or maybe it was because he had yet to process that his life had just been altered once more. The longer he denied its existence, the less likely it would be real, was what he told himself. He knew it was a lie since he'd already gone through this process once, but still…he could hope.

A slight rustling caught his attention and pausing in his actions, he looked up. There, pinned to window frame with a kunai knife, was a note. Plucking the knife from the wood, Kakashi grabbed the sheet of paper and read the note. His heart plummeted to the floor as the note fell from his fingertips and floated gently to the ground.

We have her. If you don't want us to do to her what you did to Isao, meet us near the Fire-Grass border. We'll be waiting…

Sorry about the wait. We were behind in class, so we were cramming stuff for the AP test. And I know, it's filler, but it's the arrival of a semi-substantial plot! Praise the spaghetti monster! (Next chapter is longer, I swear.)

And jokes aside, thank you for all the reviews. It makes me smile knowing people read and like my work enough to let me know. :)