Hinata was surprised Itachi was still hovering about her apartment even after she bathed and made herself a cup of tea. She felt weird making a cup for just herself, so she made a second to sit in front of him. Even if he didn't drink it, at least she tried to be hospitable.

"I don't eat," Itachi repeated as she sat down.

Couldn't he just take it? "But you can." Itachi picked up the cup and sipped it despite his objection. Hinata tried to rest back, but she immediately regretted it.

"Sit upright, and keep ice on it." Itachi blinked at what he told her, tilting his head at his own comment.

"I don't have ice packs. I'll have to go to the store." Hinata sat up, tucking a pillow behind her to keep her back straight.

"Hold a pillow to your chest if you feel like coughing, and cough even if it hurts. You're more susceptible to infection." Itachi stayed confused with his own knowledge. "Why do I know that?"

Hinata's eyebrows shot up. So she wasn't just speculating. He really was confused with what was coming out of his own mouth. "Maybe… you spend a lot of time at hospitals? People die there."

"There isn't a lot a hospital can do for a broken rib unless it pierces something." Itachi's face scrunched, almost frustrated with himself. "You should get an x-ray."

"I…" Hinata didn't like hospitals and didn't want to try to make up something to explain what happened. They would want a police report. "I'll be fine." Hinata pressed her fingers to the nasty bruise around her neck. It was going to be the least easy to explain. A broken rib she could blame on a bad fall, but it was obvious she was strangled. There wasn't really an acceptable reason to be strangled. "I don't want anyone to worry about it."

Itachi tilted the cup of tea in his hands. "Why are you alone?"

Hinata knew he would ask directly at some point. She pointed at the small shrine. "I killed my sister." Itachi was instantly curious. "And for that, I deserve to be alone."

Itachi looked at her curiously. "You feel responsible."

"I am responsible. I made a wish, and it came true." Would he finally leave her? Did an angel of death fear a murderer? "I told her I wished she'd disappear, and she did. She came to me for help, and I was too self-centered to see what was happening. She was acting out, and I didn't stop to help her."

Itachi sipped the tea. "And this is why you think you should be alone?"

"It's why I deserve to be alone." Hinata corrected.

Itachi stayed curious about her answers. "Humans who actually feel remorse let their guilt eat them alive. Actual murderers rarely feel guilt."

"You're saying because I feel guilt, I should feel fine with what I did?" Hinata felt heat in her face as he stocked an old rage, anger at herself that she couldn't let go. "And because you're not human, you can't feel guilt?"

Itachi tilted his head at her. "You're angry."

"Yes," Hinata snapped.

"You never finished mourning." Itachi blinked at her. "That's why you push everyone away. People don't leave you. You get upset when people think you should forgive yourself."

Hinata felt like he had doused her in cold water. "Excuse me?"

"Humans are forgiving when they hear sad stories," Itachi explained. "I doubt anyone has ever heard that story and not sympathized with your mistake. When you don't get the reaction you want, you cut them out of your life because you want to suffer. You think you deserve it even if no one else does." Hinata made a noise of disbelief as her eyes stung. "Why would you be invited to a wedding if they expected you to sit in the back? You put yourself there because you wanted to be ostracized from the family."

Hinata's lip trembled. "Get out."

Itachi didn't take offense. He simply put the cup down and disappeared.

Hinata wasn't sure if the pain in her chest was from her ribs or her heart at this point. She wanted to curl up and try to sleep off both the emotional and physical pain, but Itachi did tell her to sit up.

Why was she even listening to him? He didn't know where he got the information. Maybe if she went back to bed and when she woke up, she would think her argument was a bad dream to tuck with the rest of her nightmares.

And if he never came back, she would think her lamp-post-man was just a figment of her imagination, so she didn't have to feel bad for snapping at him.

Hinata made her decision and curled back up in bed, and pushed her face into her pillow.

Maybe she did push everyone away because she thought it was what she deserved, but did that make her wrong? She didn't want pity. She wanted people to see what she did for what it was: the day her life stopped.

Hinata woke up cold. Her rib cage felt like it was dipped in an ice bath. She slid her hand over it. Her skin was physically cold. She sat up with mild difficulty and noticed the blanket rolled up behind her.

Did he… lay there with an arm across her ribs to bring down her swelling? The blanket would have kept his chest from making her whole back cold.

Hinata huffed, running a hand through her hair. Why would he come back? She tossed her legs off the bed to get up when she caught sight of a big wool coat at the end of the bed. Did he leave it to mock her, or did he simply forget it when he disappeared?

Hinata brushed her hand across it. It wasn't cold like before. It had come up to room temperature. She did feel bad for snapping at him, but maybe that was the point he was making. She stumbled to the bathroom to look at the bruises around her neck in the mirror. How was she supposed to hide this?

… What if Itachi didn't get there in time? Would Kiba find her when he closed up?

Hinata stared into her own eyes in the mirror. She was supposed to message him when she got home. She left her reflection to look for her phone. She found it in her jacket that Itachi put up. He also collected her shoes and purse into their places.

Hinata rubbed her face to scrub away the growing guilt as she went for her messages. Kiba texted her several times before a message from her phone sent a single message. 'Home.'

Alright. She felt bad. Itachi didn't have to go through all this trouble. He didn't need to stay with her, he didn't need to pick up after her, and her certainly didn't need to keep her out of trouble with her coworkers. She needed to apologize to him.

Hinata dropped her phone on her bed and collected his coat to hang up by the door. The ash smell made her wonder where he got it and why he always wore it. His clothes changed, but he always had the same coat.

Would he be cold without it? Could he feel cold?

Hinata lightly rubbed safely away from her rib to try to soothe the itching. She should make herself something to eat and actually go out and get an ice pack.

Itachi waited on the edge of a building. Watching the streets, could he guess what was going to happen?

"Where is your coat?" Kisame appeared next to him. "I don't think I've ever seen you take it off."

"I left it with her," Itachi commented idly.

"Can she wear it?" Kisame nose scrunched, confused.

Itachi wasn't going to explain. "She was attacked by a lost soul."

"... Possessed?" Kisame crouched down beside him.

"No, attacked. She has a broken rib." The more Itachi thought about it. Logically, he was at fault for it. He did use her to bait it. Whether he thought it would hurt her or not, it did. "I used her to draw it out, and I wasn't close enough."

Kisame face twisted. "How mad is she?"

"She's not upset I used her." That came and went quickly. "She's upset about something else."

"She going to be okay?" Kisame wondered.

A scream sounded off down below. "Physically, she will heal. Emotionally I think she needs more comfort than I can offer." Itachi disappeared from the ledge. Kisame followed after him.