Neji shifted through the mail, and his stomach dropped as he stopped on a letter with no return address.
He recognized the handwriting.
It had been a long time waiting for this day. He lost hope for a ransom request, if Hinata wrote this, it was more likely to be a farewell.
The letter inside was simple and as nondescript as the envelope.
'He came after me. I protect myself. I hope you found his crimes.'
Hinata wrote hundreds of multiple-page letters to a convicted serial killer in prison, but she could only give them three sentences?
Neji rubbed his temple. Unfortunately, he understood. He was way past the point of being angry and grieving.
The first few months were the hardest. Coming home to the horrors of a bloodbath and the realization that Hinata was nowhere to be found made him almost not process the police's suspicion that Hiashi had murdered Hizashi. Mostly because it was written on the wall in blood, pointing to the will. Suspicion turned into fact when the key led back to a bank lock box that only had the murder weapon wrapped in a bloody shirt.
Why Hiashi would keep the murder weapon was something he couldn't even think of a reason for. Maybe guilt, but Neji doubted it. What kind of man murdered his own brother and then took in his child like nothing happened?
Neji lived through years of guilt for his uncle having to take him after his father died. He had worked so hard to show him that he was grateful. And that bastard was the reason he was an orphan in the first place.
'He came after me. I protect myself. I hope you found his crimes.'
Painfully simple. Told him everything he needed to know.
Hinata found the truth. Hiashi attacked her. She was the one who killed him.
Was she happy with her degenerate?
It was obvious he was here. The bloody mess was a clue. The extra bedding tossed on her bed that he knew she had in the closet was another. How long had she been hiding a fugitive?
The police had their theories, including the one that Neji believed to be the most likely. Hinata found the will and didn't know who else to tell.
Neji understood why she didn't tell him, but it hurt his heart that the only person that she felt that she could turn to was a serial killer.
Did he treat her well?
Neji had read through all their letters that the police would give him copies of. Years of Hinata telling him her deepest thoughts, her worries about being enough for her father's expectations, and Hidan returning with his opinions and crass comments on the matter.
Hinata didn't come to him when she was worried about taking the lesser teaching position after university. She went to Hidan.
That had hurt Neji the most to realize. Reading that, Hinata felt that she couldn't come to him for a decision like this because she thought he would take her father's side. He didn't have to guess. She wrote that down.
Neji was expecting manipulation over the years, twisting her to do his bidding, but Hidan never pushed her. He respected her in his own way, and that's when it started to make sense to him why she trusted him so much.
Honesty. Hinata valued the honesty. Having things said, even if it wasn't pretty or polite.
Was she happy?
This letter was her way of telling him that she was safe, wasn't it? Was it her way to ask him to stop looking for her?
Why now?
"Hey, Neji?" Hanabi walked into the room with the phone up to her ear. "A police department just called. I think someone used my name as an alias when they were arrested. They want me to come by and see if I know who it is." She shook her head with confusion writing on her face. "Why would they have given my real phone number?"
Neji sighed. At least they knew she was alive.
The question was now, should they tell the police that they knew her? Would that put her in danger? Should they just let her go?
Hinata giggled as Hidan came to flop his head down onto her lap. "Bad day at work?"
"Working with the pyro cunt is excruciating." Hidan curled around her waist. "I think about slitting throats more here than I did bar hopping."
Hinata put aside what was in her hands to weave them into his hair. "I am making Gyudon for dinner. Will that help calm the homicidal tendencies, at least until tomorrow?"
Hidan made a face. "Maybe."
Hinata leaned down to kiss him.
Their life was quieter now. The mountainside village Deidara was living in was simple and didn't have a lot of city news reach. It was the perfect place to hide. Hinata made an easy fit with most of the elderly empty-nested mothers who quickly took her under their wing, and Hidan found his crass mouth didn't seem to matter much to laborers as long as he could hold his tongue in front of the wives.
Deidara and Hidan went to where the work was, finding it paid more to be flexible about who needed the help, and it made it easier to wave away from official forms that the employers didn't want to file anyway. Hinata took up her time babysitting and teaching music lessons.
Slowly integrating into the community was a safety net, like the home bar had been. Hinata assured him that helping their neighbors would pay off if anyone saw them in a paper while out on a trip or a kid saw them on the news while away at school. It was harder to imagine your neighbors as murderers if they brought cut fruit and helped you fix your front step when it broke.
Would the two of them grow old here, or would they be caught tomorrow? It was something that was always looming in the distance, but for right now, Hinata just wanted to live like they would be here forever.
"Kakuzu-san called." Hinata hummed, running her hands back through his hair. "I think he's going to make the trip up for dinner soon."
"The bastard is coming for payment," Hidan grumbled, pressing his face into her stomach.
Hinata giggled. "Probably, but we owe him."
"Don't have to pay anyone back if there is no one to collect the debt." Hidan flinched as she patted his head, scolding.
"No." Hinata sighed. He didn't learn.
Hidan yawned as he got in the door. He was expecting Hinata to be asleep already, but he kicked his shoes off and found her sitting up on the bed watching a movie. "You didn't go to bed?"
"I couldn't sleep." Hinata opened her arms. Hidan came to her and collapsed onto her. Ugh. This was the only reason he kept putting up with overly kind fuck-wits in this town. "I think I just don't like not knowing if you'll be home when I wake up."
Hidan turned his head up. That feeling was probably never going to go away. The lingering feeling that they could be caught tomorrow. He would just have to get home earlier.
"Why do you smell like sake?" Hinata wondered.
"Because old fucks like to drink," Hidan grumbled.
"Take a shower." Hinata patted his shoulder.
"You coming with me?" Hidan raised an eyebrow.
"I already showered because the baby I was caring for today threw up in my hair." Hinata pushed him off.
"Ugh, I don't know how you handle those damn kids." Hidan slid onto the floor.
Hinata ruffled his hair. "Practice."
"Do you need help, yeah?" Deidara peeked over the counter.
Hinata waved her hand. "No, I am almost done. Go on out with the others." It was weird having three prison escapees mingling with their neighbors.
Almost as soon as Deidara went back out the door, Hidan came back in. "Would you take some fucking help?"
"Oh, did you send him in here?" Hinata giggled. Hidan came behind her, wrapping himself around her ribs and setting his chin down on her shoulder. "This is the opposite of helpful."
"But you love it." Hidan turned his face into her neck to trail kisses up it.
Hinata pointed the knife in her hand up at him. "I am working."
Hidan stopped attacking her neck. "We're supposed to not be threatening to kill people, sweetheart."
"Make yourself useful and take the drinks out." Hinata waved the knife toward the fridge.
"Was that so hard?" Hidan asked as he slid away, sliding his hands down her hips.
"I don't think you would have liked it if Deidara-san asked me that way." Hinata giggled at the face he made.
Hinata finished her prep and followed him out to the small barbecue they were having, leaving the bowl to one of the older women who would smack her fingers front tying to help cook the meat.
Hidan sat down and waved for her to sit with him. Hinata let him pull her down in his lap and took the odd look from one of the more judgmental neighbors, but they were just going to have to get used to it.
Kakazu took a drink tossed to him by Deidara as they both sat nearby,
How did they even get here?
Hinata thought back to the beginning. A simple letter was sent back to prison because she knew that there was more than met the eye. Over the years of exchanges, Hinata never thought she would ever see him in person, especially not having him show up in her room.
The last few months on the road felt like a fever dream. It had the worst moments of her life, with killing her father, the questionable situations they got into, and all the fear that they might be caught, but also had the best moments of her life, just sitting, eating, or laughing at whatever he decided he wanted her to try out that week.
Her hands were less clean now, but he had more of a conscience if only to keep her out of trouble.
They met somewhere in the middle, and that worked for them.
Hinata leaned on Hidan, and he wrapped his arms around her absent-mindedly as he argued with Deidara about… who knows what. Kakuzu ignored them both, sipping his drink.
It was silly to think now, but she was glad she sent the first letter.
** Lavender Long Stories **
I have moved.
Any new stories, bonus chapters to finished stories, edits/corrections to completed stories will live on in AO3.
New chapters weekly on new stories over there.
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