Dreamcatcher
By Airyo
The Price of a Secret - 1
The thin edges of her memories stretched back to before her mother died, when her father's eyes shone with his smile.
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He tossed her into the air, and Hinata squealed with glee as she flew. She was fearless as she plummeted back to the ground, wind singing past her ears and robes flaring out like wings. Below, Hiashi waited with arms extended, pale hands - the right with the scars that Hinata loved to trace when he held her - reaching out to her.
Her father will always catch her.
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Now, he wasn't there to catch her.
The images rushed past her as she fell, and Hinata learned fear.
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She woke tucked under the arm of her kidnapper, facing down towards the blur of roofs beneath them. Hinata squirmed, but only earned a harsh slap to the face for her trouble. She was shocked into silence for a moment - no one had ever struck her before - but she couldn't go without a fight.
The little heiress twisted and sunk her teeth into the exposed skin between his sleeve and his gloves. The man cursed and struck her even harder, sending stars raining across her vision. But Hinata did not let go until she tasted blood.
It was enough of a distraction.
Father ghosted within reach, a manifestation of otherworldly rage. He liquified the man's heart with a surge of chakra that was not Jyuuken. There was nothing gentle about his attack.
Then she was back in her father's familiar arms, embraced so tightly she wasn't sure who was shaking.
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Hinata hugged herself, feeling cold and small by comparison. This was how it all began, wasn't it?
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"The Cloud village demands your corpse as recompense, or they will declare war," Hiyoshi said, his disgust for them deforming his features. "They don't even try to disguise their lust for the Byakugan."
Hinata pressed herself into the shadows of her room. They seemed to forget that this wing was hers, and she could hear them arguing in the hallway.
There was a pause.
"Don't even think about it, Fish-eyes," Fugaku snapped. "This is a village matter, even if it was your fault. Konoha would never turn its back on its noble clans."
"Don't jump to conclusions as usual, Pink-eye." The men growled at each other.
Hiyoshi cleared his throat. "Uchiha-sama, Hyuuga-sama," he said, emphasizing their positions as clan heads. "Let's please re-Hyuuga-sama!"
Hinata activated her Byakugan, watching in horror as Hiashi kneeled to the ground and clutched his head in agony.
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Even years later, it hurt Hinata to watch such a scene. She clutched her hands, as white-knuckled as Hiashi's.
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Her mother caught her hand with a small smile. "Hina-chan, be careful."
Hinata stepped close and hugged Kyokki around the middle, though her short arms couldn't span her mother's rounded stomach.
"Cheer up, Mama," she reminded her. "Imouto-chan is coming. You should be happy."
"Yes, you're right," Kyokki said with a sad sigh. She picked up Hinata and pressed a kiss to her cheek. "What a good big sister you are. Hopefully, you'll take good care of her even when she becomes Branch."
Five-year-old Hinata frowned in confusion. "Isn't she still my sister?"
"You're such a good child," Kyokki praised, tears in her eyes. "Oh, it's okay," she said when Hinata put a small hand on her cheek, enormous eyes pleading her mother not to cry. "I'm crying because I'm proud of you, Hina-chan."
Hinata puffed up and smiled, even if she still couldn't understand.
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But children didn't need to read between the lines. That was the cursed skill of the adults, the burden of knowing secrets.
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"Kyokki-sama, you should not be up so soon after childbirth." Her mother smiled at Tsuru, the head of the kitchens, as she approached them. She set Hinata down and helped the child remove her shoes. With a soft groan of discomfort, she then sat down and did the same for herself.
"I will manage, Tsuru. Please don't worry about me."
"Now you know that I have to report this to Hiashi-sama. Nothing is so important that you should abandon bedrest." Tsuru scolded. "You nearly bled out yesterday after the young lady's birth - which reminds me, when are you going to name her?"
Kyokki laughed stiltedly, putting up her hands in surrender. "I'm sure Hiashi will understand. Sorry, I will see myself back to bed right now. As for Hinata's sister, I will find the perfect name for her. Just you wait!" She grabbed Hinata's hand and winked over her shoulder at Tsuru.
Hinata shivered. Kyokki's palm was clammy and cold.
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That was her last memory of her mother. The next morning, Hinata hadn't been able to wake her mother up despite her best effort.
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"Hinata." Her father's face was cast in stark shadows. She couldn't see if he was mourning or just tired, and it scared her.
"Is it true?" she whispered. If she spoke it too loud, it might become real.
"Your mother wanted your little sister to be named 'Hanabi'."
Wanted. Past tense.
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Hinata opened her eyes with a sob. She lurched upright and nearly fell off the examination table. Warm hands guided her elbows, reminding her of reality. Then, Itachi's worried face came into focus.
"I've got you," he said. "You are safe." He didn't ask inane questions like 'are you okay' or 'what is wrong' or 'what is going on'.
It was like gravity - natural, inevitable, a force of truth she didn't question - when she sought comfort by clutching fistfuls of his shirt and burying her face into his chest.