Peas! I mean Peace! Do you like pancakes? Wait...oh sorry, wrong server. Wait a few will you? -insert technical noises and all that crap- Ah, that's better. Hello-ow! Quit hitting me you stupid plot bunny! Anyways, sorry about that. So where are we? Neji's going paranoid! So uncharacteristic of him, is it not? But then again, I'm the queen of OOC-ness, aren't I. (I can never seem to make anyone be in character!)
Buut, I wanted to stop a certain someone from being serious sooo...
A/N: Naruto, Greek Deities, and Rome don't belong to me. (Why do I even f*cking well bother saying this every chapter?)
A/N 2: Incorrect usage of Greek/Roman mythological characters/creatures
A/N 3: All flames will be used to sacrifice to Jashin.
The Value of a Soul
Chapter 7: A Light and the Darkness
Neji cursed the nonexistent gods for showing such weak emotions. After all, emotions were for the weak, so all who exposed emotion were weak. Or that was Neji's reason at least. The fact that the blonde had seen him like that only served to add to his unjustified loathing towards him.
He inwardly laughed mirthlessly. He knew perfectly well of the gossip circulating about him. He had either a heart of stone, or no heart at all. The brunet found it so common to hear, that it became a tiresome exercise to taint his hands with the speakers' blood.
So he let the gossip disperse among his subjects. After all, the more they feared him, the better off he would be. Or that was his logic, to be precise.
Unfortunately, he wished they were right. He wished he did have a heart of stone. It was much more preferable as opposed to what he had, and he hated everything for it, himself included. His heart was instead brimming with venom.
It was practically seeping, oozing, with the poison, that seemed to take pleasure in voraciously devouring his sanity, rendering him nothing but an unfeeling monster. He himself had even acknowledged his dark person, and in fact, seemed to take pride in it. That just made him hate himself all the more.
But he was too lost. His sight had long ago diminished to nothing, and now, he was wandering aimlessly in a world of darkness, seeking solace, and only finding it at the expense of others. He had gotten so used to living in this darkness.
Then he chanced a glance around himself, and caught sight of a spark. A spark that lit up his dark existence. But he was lost, and accustomed to the feeling. He hated the light. He wanted it gone. He loathed it. He wanted so badly to extinguish the light. Or did he?
Dear gods, he was confused.
As soon as Naruto was aware that he was no longer in the sights of the prince, he morphed back into the dove. Flying in the direction of his dungeon cell, he became consumed in his thoughts.
Neji had branded himself as a monster. Naruto didn't believe him to be so. Oh sure, the brunet was socially retarded, but it wasn't exactly the brunet's fault.
From experience, the blonde knew that the emotional repression was due to a negative event that had progressed somewhere in the prince's life. The fact that the brunet covered it so well, impressed the blonde, but he had hidden his emotions a bit too well. A bit too well for it to be normal.
Naruto, being the son of the goddess of love, had extremely potent insight. He was able to see that the repression was nothing but a well played façade. Reaching deeper, he could also tell that the youth's emotions had long since been crushed to fragments.
However, this gave him hope, albeit a seemingly insignificant supply. After all, crushed, could be repaired. Shattered could be fixed. Broken could be healed. And when the blonde set his mind to it, he had the perseverance that left not a shadow of a doubt in the minds of any being, Olympia or Earth.
Fluttering past the window bars, he flew to the cell gates.
Kiba raised an eyebrow lazily.
"Who let the bird in?" he deadpanned. Lee simply chose to stare stupidly at the dove, who, if doves could sigh, attempted to, but only succeeded in a small crooning sound. Naruto transformed.
"Hey guys. Hope I didn't worry you too much. I just wanted to go see the sunrise," he explained. Kiba blinked unhurriedly, as if trying to see if his eyes were deceiving him.
"I know I shouldn't be surprised," Kiba commented. "But I am," he added. Naruto laughed.
"There are many things in my range of power," he informed. "Although they are mere regularities among the deities."
"This undoubtedly amazing ability that you posses, brings out more of your youth than is already being shown! We should celebrate this discovery of eternal youth!" a certain legionary exclaimed. Kiba groaned. Naruto shot a sideways glance at his prison-mate.
"Has he been drinking?" he asked quietly. Kiba shook his head.
"Thank Diana no! When He drinks, he's a lot worse than this. This is how he usually is." Naruto raised an eyebrow, bemused.
"I see...so this is what I have to tolerate now?" The brunet nodded.
"Hello!" a cheerful, yet unfamiliar voice called, as the prison door slammed open.
Naruto's eyes immediately flew to where the intruder was situated, to be met with an unfamiliar girl holding a tray of food. Bounding over, she slid the tray under the gate.
The girl had dark brown hair tied into two buns either side of her head. Her fringed bangs fell either side of her face, almost, but not quite framing it. Naruto noticed that she kept her hair in place with silver throwing needles. He blinked.
She was clad in a pale pink dress that held with one strap on her left shoulder, and fell just above her knees. With this, she wore a brown leather sash, strapped with an array of cases. On her right arm, there rested a silver armband.
Her eyes were large, dark brown orbs, that held a flash of determined stubbornness, and her skin was pale, but had quite a few scars here and there.
"Oh hi, Tenten!" Kiba called. The maiden grinned and waved.
"Hey Kiba! You've fallen into the fire again, haven't you. What did you do this time?" Kiba rolled his eyes.
"Badmouthed his royal stick up the ass," he replied. Tenten bit the edge of her tongue.
"Honestly can't say I blame you for that, but you should know better!" she reprimanded. "Oh and who's handsome over here?" she asked. Naruto, knowing Kiba had the fault of opening his mouth too wide, slapped a hand over it.
"I'm Naruto," he answered. "A pleasure to meet you." She waved.
"You too! It isn't often that we get such polite youths thrown into prison. What did you do?" Naruto rubbed the back of his neck and grinned sheepishly.
"I got mad at the prince, and hit him," he replied. Tenten laughed.
"He had it coming to him!" she exclaimed. "But seriously, people know better than to act so rashly with his highness," she added.
"You see...I'm not from around here," he explained, clamping his hand firmly ove the dog-boy's mouth, despite his struggling.
"But surely you knew of the royal family in Rome. They're famed throughout the entire world!" Naruto nodded.
"I heard of them, but I never actually paid much attention to what they were like," he admitted.
"Ah. Anyways, Princess Hinata needed to attend this council thing, so she told me to deliver you guys breakfast. She's pretty much a polar opposite from the prince when it comes to attitude. Much better character," Tenten commented. Naruto didn't comment on this.
"What's your position here?" he asked, out of curiosity.
"Oh, me? I'm Princess Hinata's personal servant and confidante as well as aide," she replied. "I guess you could rank me as a slave though," she added thoughtfully. "Because I was bought, and I don't get paid for this stuff...well I kind of do, because Princess Hinata is a generous mistress..." she rambled on. She abruptly stopped, and took a closer look at him.
"Wait a minute...you're the one Princess Hinata was talking about?" she asked. Naruto blinked. The princess talked about him?
"She talks about me?" Tenten bit her bottom lip.
"Well you fit her description. And she was correct. You do rival Venus!" Naruto blinked. What on earth? He groaned. Mother...
"Aphrodite," Kiba, corrected. Naruto's head swivelled to face him, realizing that he had taken his tan limb off the brunet's mouth. "Not Venus," he went on. "Aphrodite."
"We aren't Greek," Tenten informed.
"You are," Kiba retorted. Her eyes narrowed.
"Yes, but now I'm Roman," she said. "And next you'll end up telling me Hera is looking out for me," she added. "Not Juno."
"You know, they are basically the same person. They just prefer their Greek names," Kiba countered. Naruto shot him a warning glance, and he realized he had said too much. The brunette raised an eyebrow challengingly.
"Oh? And how, may I ask, do you know what?" Kiba grinned cheekily, and a touch nervously.
"Errm...no you may not ask," he replied. Her lips curved into a feral grin.
"Inuzuka, when I want to know, I will find out," she warned. She pleasantly waved at them before exiting. Kiba heaved a sigh of relief.
"Now you see why I covered your mouth?" Naruto asked.
"Oh please! Do not fight! We have no need for such unyouthful acts of violence!" Naruto turned to face him.
"We weren't going to fight," he deadpanned. Lee backed away.
"I am sorry for contradicting someone superior to me as you!" he quickly said. Naruto wondered if the youth should be an actor instead of a legionary. He'd be perfect for arena comedies.
"No big deal, Lee," he replied, sighing ever so slightly.
"Thank you for your forgiveness! And if I offend you again, I shall do five-hundred laps around the coliseum!" Lee exclaimed. Naruto blinked, and faced Kiba.
"He can do that?" The brunet sighed.
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," Kiba replied. Naruto decided not to question.
"Anyways, you should really eat breakfast," he told him. The brunet didn't need to be told twice.
"I wonder what sort of council was going on," Naruto thought out loud.
"Beats me," the dog-boy replied, through a mouthful of his breakfast.
"Do you understand this, Hinata, Neji?" Hiashi asked, sternly. The two nodded, one with apprehension in her eyes, the other with no expression in his.
"Father, is that all there is to know about this?" Neji asked in a monotone. Hiashi looked almost proud as he gazed at his son.
"I understand, Neji. If the council agrees, he or she will be delivered to you, to do as you wish."
A malicious smile crept onto the prince's face and he licked his lips, a dark look clouding his twin pearls.
"Oh don't worry, Father. I promise I'll be...thorough."
"However, we are still to see if what is suspected is true," Hiashi added. Neji's face slipped back into an emotionless mask.
"I understand, Father," he replied. Hinata nodded, but said nothing. The two royals were dismissed, and the council was left to sort out other matters.
"Brother..." Hinata, began, nervously.
"Yes Hinata?" Neji responded. The brunette bit her bottom lip.
"If...if you do get them, kill them quickly," the princess requested. Neji halted in his tracks.
"Hinata. This is a serious matter, and will be taken care of as seen fit. If I get whoever it is, I cannot promise you such a thing." He continued walking. "But for you, I'll try and make it as quiet as possible," he added.
"Yes brother," Hinata replied, shoulders sagging dispiritedly.
"I am sorry Hinata," Neji apologized in a voice that he himself could barely hear. He cursed himself for saying it out loud. Now he was going soft? He hissed quietly.
"Did you say something, brother?" Hinata asked.
"No!" the brunet replied, almost immediately. She questioned him no further, but she swore she had heard something.
They parted ways, and she headed to her quarters. That was probably the most that her brother had ever spoken to her in a week, even though it was concerning a matter of execution. She smiled softly.
Ok. uh. Yeah. so. Uh, I've got nothing. How about you? Uh, yeah.
P.S. Please hit the plot bunny. Thank you for your co-operation.
-Jeya-