Chapter 25

Tears began to blur my vision when I realized the person I'd searched for so desperately was finally before me, "S-Sasuke!"

He hesitated, but pulled me to my feet by my arm as he avoided meeting my eye. I winced at the pain in the middle of my back from the vehicle crashing. The usually tanned skin on his face had paled like he'd seen a ghost.

The information I've acquired in the past twenty four hours was so overwhelming, but I still couldn't stop myself from wrapping my arms around him and squeezing tightly. The fact that he'd left me for six months wasn't even a thought in my mind. I tried to think of something, anything, to say, but the only thing that left my lips were sobs.

Slowly, he lay a hand on the back of my head and wrapped his other arm around my body. After dropping to this unhealthily low weight again, he seemed so much bigger than before. If I was a twig, he was a redwood tree.

"Come, Sakura, we made a deal."

I nearly jumped out of my skin as Gaara's voice met my ears. His tone suggested he was offering me a warning to obey. When I released Sasuke and turned to look at the king, he was standing near the broken car door in the sand with his eyes blazing red.

My blood froze in fear and I glanced back at Sasuke. He still wouldn't meet my eye and kept his glare locked onto the Suna native. My chest tightened as I tried not to let his indifference affect me and I attempted to keep my composure as I turned to do as told.

Before I could even take one step, I felt a large hand on my shoulder and he pulled me back to stand in front of him, "She's been claimed. You know the laws."

My eyes widened and my tears started welling back up. What's he doing? Does he like me or not? If so, why did he leave me? And if not, why's he defending me from another vampire?

"Your uncle and I have an agreement."

"I don't give a damn what you think you have. She's spoken for and this is a fact you need to accept."

The redhead came closer, bright eyes locked onto me, but he froze a yard or so away when I felt Sasuke's grip on my shoulder tighten slightly. The king looked at him before returning his gaze to mine.

My voice shook with both emotion and fear, "I'm sorry, Gaara. After what you did…I'm afraid of you."

The Sunagakure king tilted his head in a calculating way as his studying eyes danced between me and Sasuke, "You are afraid of this Uchiha, too, correct? Why choose him?"

I looked back at the prince in question, who continued to refuse to meet my eye, "Afraid of..? I'm not afraid of Sasuke. Why would you think that?"

Gaara's eyes jumped back up, "I was informed he attacked you worse than I had."

I felt anger boiling in my stomach and tried to take a step forward, but was held still by Sasuke's hold on my shoulder, "That wasn't his fault! He was forced. You weren't!"

Gaara's already blank expression flattened further as he processed my argument. "How can you be sure that I, too, wasn't forced?"

My eyebrows lifted in shock and I paused, "...were you?"

He tilted his head in confusion once more, "No, I was not. However, you can see how easy it would be to convince you."

My anger returned and I took a deep breath, trying to remember that this was a terrifying pure-blooded vampire and the ruler of an entire nation, so I needed to take care in how I spoke and acted toward him.

"I know for a fact that he was. I'm sorry, Gaara, I just don't feel the same way about you."

His eyes burned into mine for what felt like ages before he broke them away and turned them onto Sasuke, "If I ever hear that you have hurt her again, I will personally end your life."

Sasuke's silence ended and he bit back at the royal, "What gives you the right to say that when you've also hurt her?"

Gaara held the Uchiha's line of sight in silence for a moment before turning his back to us both and starting to walk in the direction that the vehicle we'd crashed had been going, "You may be right."

We watched him walk in silence until he was out of earshot before I turned to Sasuke, pulling my body out of his grasp, and felt the tears in my eyes roll over to run down my face, "Why! Why did you do this?"

My hurt was evident in my voice, but I didn't care. I had to make it clear how I felt.

Sasuke looked down at me with an expression that said he knew this was coming. He didn't reply because he also knew that I wasn't done yelling at him. He had a guilty expression that made me want to forgive him easily, which only proved to anger me further.

I shoved his chest with what little energy I had, choking on the ache in my chest, "How could you throw me away like that after everything? Did you even stop to think about how I feel? Or what I want?"

He pushed my hands away and gently held my face in between his hands before firmly pressing his lips against mine. I tried to fight him angrily for a few moments before finally giving up and accepting his affection.

When he pulled back, I pushed his chest again, "That...That doesn't solve anything!" The anger was starting to melt away and all that was left was the hurt. My voice got a bit quieter so I wasn't yelling anymore.

He nodded, a serious look on his handsome face, "I know."

I felt horribly embarrassed and vulnerable, "Is it because you actually aren't interested in me? If so, all you had to do was tell me. I would've preferred your honesty over being abandoned like that."

I know why he did what he did, but I couldn't understand how. He felt so guilty after almost killing me and taking something so precious from me that he felt like a monster, so he sent me away and tried to take away mine and everyone else's memories of it all. Did he stop to think about what would happen if I came looking for answers and he wasn't the first person I encountered?

He grabbed my hands in his own once more, looking down at my frail and bruised body as though my appearance was terrorizing him, "Stop. You know that's not true."

I tried to pull my wrists away, but he refused to let go, "No, I don't, Sasuke. You left me for six-" my voice cracked and my retort was cut off with a sob.

He studied my face for what felt like ages before letting out a sigh and averting his gaze to the sand on the ground, "I care for you more than I've cared for any woman."

My eyes widened in shock at his sincere confession as he continued, "I couldn't stand the idea of you dying by my hand, so I thought it'd be best if you returned to your life from before."

He raised his gaze back up, "Please forgive me."

His usually guarded eyes were clear and holding nothing back. He looked desperate and guilty and it completely convinced me of his words.

I shook my head, pulling his hands up to my face like they'd been when he kissed me and raised onto my tip-toes to give him a small kiss on the mouth, "Please, can we just go back to how it was?"

My voice was quiet and weak. He nodded in silence, kissing me deeply over and over again as if trying to physically show me his relief.

Things went back to being semi-normal. Ino and I had a tear-filled reunion. My sister apologized for letting Sasuke do what he'd done, but also explained that she saw how close I was to dying and understood the choice he made. As long as I was safe, she could live with being separated for a while.

After forbidding me from telling him, she described what a mess he'd been over the past six months. Apparently, he barely left his room, even for meals. Sai even had to bring him blood a few times.

When he wasn't in his room, he was out of the castle doing god knows what, but always came back covered in scratches and dirty like he'd been fighting someone or something. Instead of making me feel better that he'd felt as awful as I had, I felt terribly concerned. I spent one day in emotional turmoil whereas he spent over a hundred and fifty. Even if I was upset about how things happened, I didn't want him to hurt like that.

Ino also gave me the surprising news that she and Sai were officially engaged. The Uchiha twin apparently popped the question about two months ago and she immediately accepted.

I wasn't surprised that they'd fallen in love because we all see how crazy they are for one another, I just didn't think he'd propose to someone from the lower class and so quickly at that. Ino didn't even need me to bring that fact up and told me she'd shared my prejudice until it happened.

She said he told his parents while announcing their engagement that if they didn't accept he'd run away with her, but also said they immediately approved anyway so the threat wasn't necessary. They were still deciding on a wedding date, but she showed me her flashy ring. It had a large ruby in the center, surrounded by smaller diamonds.

Sasuke informed me that Obito had gone to him immediately after Gaara had taken me away and that's how he knew where to find us. Sasuke hadn't been in the castle, as Madara stated, and had instead been on his way home from one of his mysterious trips outside. Obito himself had fled the castle, as any sane person would after being locked in that cellar for as long as he'd been, but both of the twins assured me I'd see their cousin again.

I finally just came out and asked him if his parents knew what Madara was doing and he looked uncomfortable by the question. It turns out that they did, in fact, know about a lot of the terrible things Madara has done. He said they didn't know he'd been cornering me and feeding on me like he had been, but did know about Obito and Itachi's abuse.

To my bitter shock, it turns out that Fugaku is not as strong a vampire as Madara and only remains on the throne due to the latter's respect for tradition. Both of his parents fear if they intervene or offend him enough, he'll either glow them all into his mindless puppets or simply wipe out the whole family.

While I was hurt even further by the fact that his family knew of what we were all struggling through, I had to understand things from their point of view. So that left us all silently trying to think of ways to get rid of the tyrant Uchiha royal without him destroying everything and/or everyone.

I convinced Sasuke to undo the glowing he performed on Naruto and Kiba, as it broke my heart to see the former trying so hard to remember the woman he cared so much for and so he could talk to his best male friend about it.

The Hyuga princess expressed her gratitude in a neatly written letter that she had Tenten sneak from her family's compound to the castle. Apparently the two women rekindled their friendship after Hinata's short stay to take care of me.

A few weeks passed and I was feeling close to being healthy, only needing to continue to gain a bit more weight to be back to full-health. Ino and I were dusting some of the shelves built into the walls of the family room while Tenten polished the silverware in the kitchen.

"So are you gonna be turned into a vampire then?" I felt the tips of my ears burn as I asked Ino the question I've been agonizing over since I learned of her engagement.

"Eventually, yes. Sai wants to wait until I'm at least twenty-one."

I felt a knot form in my chest. So that means that in less than four years, my sister won't be a normal human being anymore. I glanced over to see her humming to herself as she worked, a happy little smile on her lips. The knot tightened and I squeezed my eyes shut and forced my emotions back.

If that's what she wants to do with her life, then that's her decision. As long as she's happy and healthy, I can't complain. I couldn't help, though, but imagine myself getting older and older with age and her staying flawlessly youthful. Bile rose in my throat at the thought.

"What about you?"

I was ripped from my thoughts, "Huh? What about me?"

Ino gave me a hopeful grin, "Have you and Sasuke talked about it yet?"

My face erupted in heat, "What do you mean yet? I don't think he intends to-"

As if speaking his name had summoned them, the twin princes arrived as I was mid full-blown panic attack and Ino casually pulled Sai down into a kiss. The more talkative of the two, Sai spoke in his usual mono-tone voice once my sister released her hold on his collar, "You two no longer need to do this type of thing. You know that, right?"

Ino and I shared a knowing look before she waved a hand dismissively, "We were raised better than to stay somewhere without earning our keep."

Sai wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her against him, "You're not a guest anymore, my love. There's no keep to be earned. This is your home now."

I saw my sister's cheeks tint a pretty pink color and looked over to see Sasuke roll his eyes at their open affection. I averted my gaze back to the shelf I was cleaning and started putting the pretty, decorative knick knacks back in their places, pretending I didn't feel a small pang of jealousy.

Sasuke and I struggle to even talk about our feelings, much less dote on one another out in the open, so there's no point losing sleep over how much PDA the happy couple before us loves to show.

Later that night at the dinner table, Ino and Sai gave each other a knowing look before the prince cleared his throat and pulled everyone's attention to him. "After talking, Ino and I have decided that we'd like to be married two weeks from today."

Mikoto nearly exploded with happiness, clapping her hands together with a warm grin on her perfect lips, "Oh, how wonderful! It is kind of short notice for a royal wedding, though. What about your dress, dear? Will it be finished in time?"

Ino beamed with pride, "I've been working on my wedding dress since the day after the ball. I'll just need to alter it a bit more and it'll be ready to go!"

I couldn't stop myself from speaking up, "Why'd you start making it then?"

She looked up at her fiancé lovingly, "I was hopeful."

Mikoto made a loving noise and continued, "Well, we'll have to start mailing invitations out immediately! I didn't think we'd be having another event in the castle this soon!"

I glanced over to see Madara smirking at me from across the table and averted my gaze back to my plate. I was, of course, already scared of the man, but knowing that no one under this roof would likely be able to protect me from him had me mortified.

I'd been so confused as to why he wouldn't just kill me like he'd wanted for so long, but after what happened in the cellar I finally figured it out. He's having too much fun playing with me to let me die.

After dinner, I was taking my hair out of the intricate updo Tenten had done for me, when Sasuke came into the bathroom and started running a bath. He leaned against the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest and watched me as the large tub filled.

I glanced at him, acutely aware of his unwavering gaze, "I'll be out of your way in a moment, there's just a pin that's stuck-"

To my surprise, he came up behind me and gently took my hair from my hands, working on untangling it from the pin with steady fingers. I looked at his reflection as he stood behind me in the mirror. His eyes were trained on the task at hand and I took the chance to admire his godly appearance while he was distracted.

The knot was undone and the pin removed in no time at all and he handed me the little object with a small look of pride on his usually annoyed expression. I accepted it with a smile of thanks before cleaning up my mess at the counter and heading towards the door.

I snuck a glance behind me as I shut it, seeing him pull his shirt off over his head. I put my hand to my heart as I clicked the door shut behind me and leaned my back against it.

He's been walking on eggshells around me since my return. I know he's still terrified of hurting me like last time, but things only went that far south because of Madara. I'd tried kissing him a few times in the first week of me being back, but he seems too scared that he's going to break me. I heard him step into the water and took a deep breath. It's time for me to show him that I trust him and not just say it.

My face warmed as I entered the steam-filled room. I met his gaze instantly and made myself hold it despite wanting to look away with embarrassment. He didn't say anything, but watched me as I crossed the room, undressed, and stepped into the hot water to join him.

When I was finally submerged, I gave him a proud smile, "You know, this is kind of like the opposite of that one time." I was, obviously, talking about the time he'd come into my room when I was bathing and helped himself to join my bath as punishment for following his orders.

The corner of his mouth twitched as though he wanted to smile at the memory, but he forced himself to keep a frown, "What are you doing?"

My smile faded as he tried to cut the small-talk, so I crossed the space between us and stood directly in front of him, "I trust you, Sasuke. You don't have to hold back anymore, okay?"

He studied my face for a moment before closing his eyes and sighing, "I didn't know I was under his control before. I don't know if I am now."

I pulled a hand out of the water to touch the side of his face. His eyes opened and he seemed ready to push me away if I got any closer, "There's always going to be a chance. Even if we somehow deal with Madara, there's always going to be some kind of danger, isn't there? Are you saying you never want to do things like that with me again?"

My face was burning with embarrassment as I chickened out of saying the actual term of what I was referring to, but I still kept a steady gaze on Sasuke's glaring eyes. He seemed angry that I was pushing him like this, but after making me as upset as he had, he's been a bit more lenient with me.

"Even if there's no interference, I don't know how well I can control myself around you."

I groaned in annoyance and let myself fall backwards into the tub, submerging myself underwater for a moment before popping back up on the opposite side as him.

He steeled his gaze as I pushed my wet hair out of my face, "I'm only thinking about your safety."

I frowned, letting out a defeated shrug with a blazing red face, "I know, It's just...I remember the good parts about that night too."

He was silent for a moment and I had to look back up to his face to make sure he was still there. The look of muted surprise on his face shocked me. I put up both of my hands in defense, squeezing my eyes shut, "D-Don't look at me like that! I just wanted you to know that the memory isn't a hundred percent bad!"

His stunned expression slowly faded and he averted his gaze as he motioned for me to turn around so he could wash my hair. I did so in silence, enjoying the feeling of his skilled fingers massaging my scalp. "I'm serious. We should take things slow for a while."

I pouted to myself. I'll just have to find a way to change his mind.