Adult-FanFiction.org : Naruto

The Banks Of The River Styx	By : AkashaEmily Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 915 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 6
- 7
- 8
Disclaimer: I make no profit from these stories or from the usage
of the �Naruto� characters. Also, please do not use this story as a medical
guide in any way. No, seriously- I know someone, somewhere will try it and,
though I am attempting to be realistic, I am not a healthcare professional. If
you are injured, see a doctor immediately.

Chapter Seven: A Heart�s Desire

Sasuke
stared at the image presented in the mirror, watching the people in the room
beyond. The smooth reflective glass was in the perfect placement as it hung off
the hall closet door, allowing the Uchiha an unobstructed view into the
occupied kitchen area from his position several feet away while remaining
hidden in the darkened hall. It felt as if something was shredding the insides
of his chest, making the area ache and pulse with agony, the sensation gaining
in strength as the moments stretched on.
But
despite the pain he couldn�t look away, his eyes trained on the tall blonde
male chatting away with those seated at the table around him.
�You
can go in.� Brian whispered, his little hand giving the elder brunette�s
trembling one a reassuring squeeze. �There�s plenty of food but if you�re not
hungry you don�t have to eat anything.�
The
child gestured at the mirror and Sasuke pulled his eyes away from Naruto�s
look-alike long enough to note that several chairs at the table were
unoccupied. Part of him also noted the other doppelgangers lounging in the
large kitchen, unconsciously filing the faces away for later review, before his
gaze fastened on the blonde again.
Naruto! Naruto! Naruto! The name repeated over and over in his head, becoming
a mantra that eventually degenerated into just one long syllabic rhythm looping
over and over in his head. The sight of his former teammate ripped open the box
in Sasuke�s mind labeled with the blonde�s name, flooding his consciousness
with a stream of blurred memories both painful and comforting. The dual
sensations scrambled the brunette�s ability to form coherent thought, consuming
him with a deep-seated yearning that nearly suffocated him as a vice-like grip
wrapped itself around his heart and strangled the organ.
His
body ached from the longing suddenly assaulting him, the emotion urging his
feet toward the room and the blonde male there in like physical force.
However�
Something was wrong with this picture. Something about the whole scenario just
screamed out of place and Sasuke knew that if he had been in his right mind he
would have been able to spot it instantly. Overloaded with emotions, the sensations
making him shake and twitch as he continued to stare, Sasuke couldn�t think
past the fact that Naruto was in the room beyond, living and whole only a few
feet away.
All
Sasuke had to do was shuffle forward around the doorway and he�d be able to
touch his friend again, to hug the blond and never let go, and he wanted to do
so more than anything except� Except�
He
couldn�t make his feet move.
�It�s
okay.� Brian was saying quietly. The boy had taken two steps ahead of Sasuke
and was tugging the arm in his grip like a lead rope in an effort to goad him
forward.
Sasuke�s
gaze settled on the mirror once more and he took a step backward instead, panic
and icy fear inexplicably spiking through him, drowning out the other emotions
rioting inside him.
�I
can�t.� He whispered and sharply tugged his hand free of the child�s grasp. The
elder brunette took a few more steps backward, distancing himself from the
scene and the child as he withdrew. He hadn�t been spotted yet, he could still
slip away unnoticed.
�But
it�s okay!� Brian whispered, looking distressed as Sasuke retreated back the
way the two had come.� �You�re invited,
Sasu!�
Though
he didn�t miss the note of desperation in the child�s voice, he ignored it as
if he hadn�t heard it. He made a shooing motion with his right hand, his left
useless since it was convulsing again at his side. �You go.�
Brian
continued to stand there staring at him, dismayed. He looked back at the
doorway leading into the kitchen then back at Sasuke. The child squared his
small shoulders and began following Sasuke resolutely.
�No!�
The Uchiha hissed angrily, making the startled child stop halfway to him. �You
go eat. I�m not hungry.�
His
stomach was churning so badly, he was afraid he was going to be sick right then
and there. He had to get out of here, had to get away from Naruto and the happy
people in that room. The urge to flee, to run screaming from everyone and
everything was overwhelming and Sasuke squeezed his eyes shut, abruptly light
headed. Grimacing, he tangled his good hand in his hair and tugged it sharply,
using the pain as a distraction to the growing maelstrom inside him.
�I
can�t.� Sasuke said as the child�s mouth opened to speak. He tried to swallow
the choking lump in his throat and couldn�t; when he spoke again his voice
cracked, making him sound as if he was in the midst of some form of brutal
torture.� �I just� I can�t!�
He
fled before Brian could reply, turning around and limping until he could
disappear around a corner. Barely managing to navigate around objects against
the hallway walls, he limped along the corridors as he hunted for the stairs
that would take him to the second floor. He couldn�t see straight anymore as
spots danced before his eyes, his body cramping in protest as he forced it to
move. Blinking rapidly to chase back the grey trying to eat his vision, Sasuke
found a staircase and climbed it, ignoring the flares of pain from his left leg
as he did so. Once upstairs, he leaned against a wall as he gasped for air,
looking around until he could spot the familiar open doorway.
Sasuke
shut the door firmly behind him when he finally found his room, leaning his
back against the dark wood as his chest heaved. He couldn�t seem to get enough
air, couldn�t breathe as his heart struggled to pump enough blood to keep him
upright. Head pounding, he rubbed at a spot on his sleep shirt, massaging the
ridge of scar tissue marring his chest in an effort to ease the ache of the
organ working so hard beneath his fingertips. It wasn�t working and just then
his attention was forcibly diverted to his stomach as the churning sensation
he�d been fighting off became full blown nausea; he clapped a hand over his
mouth and hurried to the bathroom, barely made it to the toilet in time to
prevent being sick all over the floor.
As
if vomiting in itself was not sufficient punishment, Sasuke�s fragile form was
wracked by a violent coughing fit afterwards. Already on his knees from
worshipping the porcelain god, he didn�t have far to fall as he was forced to
the floor, doubled over from the intensity of the attack. With one final
disgusting sound, the Uchiha was able to breathe relatively normally again even
if he did feel as if he was sucking air through a straw. Curled on his side on
the bathmat, Sasuke panted, emotionally and physically exhausted, waiting for
the roaring in his skull to die down. Unwise as it may be, the moment he could
do so he forced himself upright, shaky legs reinforcing the thought that this
was a bad idea.
Ignoring
the warning, Sasuke went about flushing the toilet�s contents away and cleaning
himself up. He shed his pajama top, the article now sweat-soaked and stained
with both flecks of regurgitated cereal and crimson streaked sputum, and ran a
damp washcloth over his upper body until he felt marginally cleaner.
Slinging
the soiled articles of cloth into the bathtub, he pulled a hand towel from the
rack near the sink and began half-heartedly wiping his skin dry as he leaned
heavily against the bathroom doorway, shaking.
Distantly,
he hoped that whoever had to do the laundry later decided not to examine the
stains on the washrag too closely. The idea to strip completely reared its head
and, though he agreed it would be a good way to cool down his suddenly
overheated skin, the Uchiha decided against it since it would require him to
actually move from his precarious position. Instead he let his head fall
forward until his chin rested on his chest and examined the newest injury to
his body, eyeing the carefully placed peeling padding with distaste.
I don�t remember this wound. The thought was an effort to distract himself as the
panic he�d almost been able to forget resurfaced with a vengeance and began
trying to claw its way out of his chest. Purging his breakfast had helped only
marginally to restore some form of control but now even that was eroding away
under his emotional distress.
�Kyuubi? Swallowing with difficulty, the brunette concentrated
and reached out to the fox, looking for a measure of comfort from his parasitic
companion; even if the demon refused to talk to him, Sasuke would still be able
to feel the other�s presence and that in itself would be reassuring.
Except
he couldn�t find Kyuubi -for what ever reason, the fox just wasn�t there
�-Sasuke?-
His
head shot up instinctively at the sound of his name, hunting for the owner of
the painfully familiar voice desperately until he found the blonde sitting on
his bed.
The
brunette heard himself whimper at the sight of the transparent grinning figure
because, down to the tiniest detail, it looked exactly like Naruto. Same whisker marks on tanned cheeks. The same
beautiful hair tousled carelessly above impossibly blue eyes. Same shit-eating
grin from when they were younger, the one that always meant mischief wasn�t far
behind.
It
was his him- his beautiful Naruto sitting not five feet away on Sasuke�s
rumpled sheets.
�You�re
not real.� Sasuke said hoarsely, throat dry. He clutched the door jamb with his
right hand, the wood cracking under his fingers while his body trembled and his
knees threatened to buckle. By his waist, his useless left arm practically
danced as the muscles went ballistic, the resulting pain racing up and down his
entire left side, forcing him to cling to the doorframe for support.
The
phantom blonde frowned at him briefly before patting the space next to it with
a shy grin. �Come sit with me so we can
talk.-
�I
can�t.� Sasuke sobbed out, voice breaking as he turned his face into the wood
to hide eyes burning from unshed tears. �Don�t do this.�
-Please come sit with me?-
The
lump in his throat threatened to strangle him and the Uchiha wondered if he
could make the hallucination go away if he hid in the bathroom.
-I�ll come in after you, don�t think I won�t, teme!- The phantom growled, the sound alone enough to make
the brunette bare one eye and watch as the image uncrossed its arms. It stood
and took a few steps toward him but paused when Sasuke nearly tripped over his
own feet while retreating into the bathroom.
�I
can�t do this!� His voice was a choked whisper, harsh and thick with all the
emotions trying to claw their way out of his throat. He couldn�t think, every
thought sent running by the presence just a few feet away, the thundering of
his own heart incredibly loud as the sound echoed inside his skull. Sasuke was
completely incapacitated�
His
eyes snapped open as he released his death grip on the door frame and forced
his fingers to form a hand sign, realization crashing down around him.
Genjutsu!
It had to be- no other explanation for what was happening made any sense. In
his race to rescue Naruto someone had snagged him in an illusion either during
his escape from Sound or during his mission to rescue Naruto. The insight
helped restore a bit of balance in his mind, helped him push back the emotional
maelstrom raging inside him and think.
His
mental prison was extremely elaborate for a genjutsu and someone had obviously
put a lot of effort into making the cast of the illusion and sequence of events
believable, more so than any other genjutsu Sasuke had ever encountered. Such
lengths could only mean that whoever had used the jutsu was desperate to make
Sasuke believe in it which meant- and here his heart gave an excited leap at
the thought- that there was still a high chance that Naruto was still alive!
Someone did not want him to interrupt the Akatsuki ceremony, someone desperate
enough try and trap the Sharingan wielder in some nightmare fantasy.
No
matter which way he looked at it, everything added weight to Sasuke�s theory
that Naruto was alive and still the Kyuubi�s vessel.�
He
had to hurry; there was no way to know for sure how much time had passed since
he�d been ensnared in the illusion. If the ceremony had already begun he could
literally only have seconds to save his favorite dobe.
Hope
gave him the strength to stand under his own power and Sasuke did so proudly as
determination flooded through him in a powerful rush. He would save Naruto; he
would rescue the blonde, kill Itachi, pour his heart out to the dobe, and let
the chips fall as they may. Sasuke was going to save his former teammate and no
stupid genjutsu was going to stop him.
With
a sneer at the phantom that was now looking at him with an expression akin to
pity, Sasuke gathered his chakra, shut his eyes and dispelled the illusion with
a word. �Kai!�

�Hey,
Brian!� Andrew greeted, smiling as his son entered the kitchen and walked over.
The smile became a frown as he took in his son�s dejected expression. �What�s
up Buddy?� What happened for you to make
such a face?�
��Where�s Sasuke?� Alex asked before Brian
could answer.
There
was a rude grunt from Hikaru as the tall brunette entered the room, Aiko in his
arms. He took his seat at the far end of the table, lips pressed into a thin
line as he watched them all through narrowed eyes from across the table.
Andrew
shot him a look before turning back to his obviously distressed son.
�What
happened?� The blonde asked softly, running a hand through Brian�s soft hair as
the child took the empty seat beside him.
Brian�s
lower lip trembled and he looked at the floor before continuing. �He said he
wasn�t hungry and left. I don�t think he felt too good.�
From
further down the table, Hinata- now fully caffeinated- pushed her chair back
and rose while dusting the last remaining crumbs of her toast from her hands.
�I�ll go check on him.�
�You
need sleep.� Andrew said firmly. �I�ll go check on him��
Hinata
shook her head. �Once I get Sasuke settled, Neji can take over guard duty while
I sleep. It shouldn�t take long.�
Neji,
sitting beside his sister, grunted around the mouthful of cereal he was
currently chewing and frowned. Before he could voice his objection however,
Hinata had patted his shoulder and left.
��Besides,� Frank spoke up, arching his
eyebrows at the blonde before looking down at the children beside him. �You
guys should spend the day playing together. Unlike the twins, Andrew, you still
have a few more days of work to get through before you can officially take your
Christmas vacation.�
��That reminds me,� Andrew wiggled his eyebrows
at his suddenly anxious sons, bringing their attention from watching Hinata
leave back to him. �Have you two thought about where you want to go for New
Year�s? There�s lots of snow here so how about somewhere warm, hm? We could go
down to Orlando
again or maybe down to the Keys this time?�
The
twins glanced at one another before Alex answered. �We haven�t thought about it
but the beach sounds good.�
�Are
we big enough to swim with the dolphins?� Brain inquired, eyes suddenly bright
with excitement about the prospect.
�Yeah
Dad!� Alex chimed in. �Are we?�
Andrew
blinked and laughed, standing suddenly as he seized on the distraction. He
grinned and stepped away from the table, his eyes bright with amusement as his
voice became teasing. �Only if you can beat me in a chess match!�
�Huh?�
Brian said. �Wait, Daddy, what does that have to do with being tall enough?�
�Hey!
Dad!� Alex said, hopping out of his chair and running down the hall after his
father. �Don�t run! That�s cheating- you�re legs are longer!�
Brian
grabbed a piece of toast off his father�s plate and chased after the pair. He
disappeared around a bend with a loud yell. �I want black!�
When
all three were gone, Frank sighed in relief and pulled a newspaper out from
under his chair. Quickly finding the news sections, both local and national, he
handed the remainder to Neji who took it and fished out his own interests to
set aside while he found and folded the Sports section into a more manageable
size for one-handed handling. He set the newly folded newsprint down on the
table in front of Hikaru since the new father was too busy feeding his daughter
to take it from the Hyuuga.
�Thanks.�
The frustrated brunette muttered, pulling the rejected bottle away from Aiko.
�No, sweetie.� He added, nudging the paper out of her reach with his elbow as
she made a grab for it. �That�s for Daddy, yes it is! That�s for Daddy to read
until you go back to sleep- No, baby, ouch!�
He
had made the mistake of leaning too close to the infant while he spoke and now
she was yanking painfully on the hair in her hold. She tried to suck on her
fistful but Hikaru pushed the nipple of the bottle between her lips before she
could. Aiko released him in favor of gripping the bottle, attempting to it away
as he pulled his hair free before she could catch him again.�
Aiko
began to cry loudly and, with a heavy sigh, Hikaru set the bottle on the table
before settling his daughter over the spit up towel he had draped over his
shoulder. He patted her back while she squalled, grimacing when Aiko failed to
burp after several minutes.
Frank
and Neji shot him irritated looks over the tops of their newspapers section.
�Alright,
alright.� Hikaru said, packing up the baby supplies while Aiko continued to cry
right beside his ear.
�I
don�t get it.� He told her, holding her two-handed at head height as he left
the kitchen and walked toward her room. His voice seemed to make the infant
pause in her crying and he continued. �You were fine letting� that man hold you. A perfect angel. What
did he do that was so special?�
As
if to answer his question, she reached forward, her tiny hand outstretched to
grab a long lock of the dark hair hiding his temple.
�Oh,
no you don�t.� Hikaru told her sternly, tossing his head to catch the strands
behind his ear and shoulder before settling her against him again. �Daddy
doesn�t like having his hair pulled. Now let�s go put you down for a nap��
That
was as far as he got since Aiko began wailing again with renewed energy. They
reached her room, and Hikaru went through everything he could think of to try
and get her settled. He changed her diaper and checked her bottom for signs of
redness. He tried burping her again. He set her on her back in her crib, wished
her sweet dreams, and left to stand in the hallway out of sight but was forced
to return when she continued to cry. He resorted to entertaining her with her
favorite sleeping toy, a soft green frog small enough for her to grip and
cuddle but not small enough choke on.
Aiko
continued to cry despite his efforts and Hikaru wanted to join her.
�What
did you do?� The voice from doorway belonged to Brian and though the question
was innocent, Hikaru wanted to snarl an answer at the child that truly wasn�t
appropriate for the boy�s young ears.
Instead
the frustrated adult shoved aside his pride and asked a burning question. �What
did he do to maker her sleep?�
Brian
blinked slowly but, showing more maturity than any other six year old, wisely
didn�t ask who his uncle was referring to. �Sasuke just held her and� um� made
her a toy?�
Hikaru�s
eyebrows rose at the questioning lilt in the boy�s voice, sleep deprived mind
plaguing the adult with all sorts of inappropriate ideas as to what kind of toy
the stranger had made. He felt his expression turn ugly.
Brian
held his hands up in a placating manner, the gesture reminiscent of his missing
mother and Hikaru�s emotions turned to sadness before boiling back to near
rage. As if summoned by Brian�s growing alarm, Alex appeared at his brother�s
side and held out an orange paper crane to their uncle.
�This
is the toy Sasuke made.� Alex said to Hikaru before adding in an undertone to
his brother. �I beat him. Your turn.�
Brian
rolled his eyes and left with an exaggerated sigh.
�That�s
it?� Hikaru asked, pointing a finger at the construction paper creation
curiosity stamping out his anger. The thing wasn�t even symmetrical; one wing
was bigger than the other and the head looked as if it had been crushed in some
sort of accident. And to top it off it was so�hideously�orange.
�Hey!�
Alex said, as if insulted. The blonde frowned petulantly and pulled the bird
back, holding it against his small chest in a protective manner. �You asked
what Sasuke did and this is it! Aiko loved hers a lot but its all soggy now
because she chewed on it so it won�t fly.�
�Fly?�
Hikaru blinked at the boy in disbelief. Not
with those wings- even if you released it at a good height, the thing wouldn�t
fly very far, not nearly as far as a normal paper plane would go. It must be
the color, he decided. If that
was all it took to quiet his daughter, then Hikaru�s sleepless nights were over
and he couldn�t help the smile on his lips even when Aiko began to wail again.
�It�s
okay sweetie,� He said as he picked her up and walked her around the room while
bouncing her gently. �Daddy�s going to make you lots of planes to play with!
I�ll use all sorts of colors-�
The
promise of more playthings, despite their color, did nothing to stop Aiko�s
tantrum. She cried and cried and Hikaru once again went through his regime of
checking her diaper and offering food. No attempt at placation worked and,
chagrined, the brunette held out his hand for the orange monstrosity.
�Aiko!�
Alex said, holding onto the toy and ignoring his uncle. �Aiko look!� He held
the bird aloft, wiggling it, and Hikaru obediently turned so that the infant
leaning over his shoulder could see the damn thing.
�� Instantly the crying subsided, degenerating into little
gurgles and Hikaru felt one of his daughter�s little fists leave his skin. He
turned a little further to the side, wanting to see exactly what Alex had done
so it could be replicated with the planes Hikaru was going to have to make, but
the blonde was only holding the bird up and moving it slowly back and forth far
above his head.
�� Can you go play with Aiko? Can you keep her company
until she goes to sleep?�
Somewhat
disappointed at the lack-luster display, Hikaru sighed and waited, tuning out
what Alex was saying as he waited for his hearing to normalize. The brunette
yawned and shifted his daughter�s position from his shoulder to his chest briefly
before finally deciding it was time to try putting her in the crib again now
that she wasn�t screaming her head off. Unfortunately the baby wasn�t willing
to lay down yet and as soon as her back touched the mattress, she began to fuss
and tear up again.
�� Aiko! Aiko look!� Alex said and Hikaru frowned down at
the blonde suddenly standing beside him, eyeing the empty small hand pointing
in the air with suspicion. But just as he was about to tell his nephew to
politely leave, Aiko began to make little happy noises and hold her hands out
toward the ceiling.
�� A bizarre feeling of trepidation suddenly plaguing,
Hikaru slowly followed her gaze and stared for several minutes, dark eyes
watching the orange blur swoop around them all before he left the crib�s side,
stuck his head out of the doorway, and bellowed loudly for his brother-in-law
to join them immediately.

�� Regardless of what Andrew Pryderi may think of her,
Hinata was not an idiot. She knew exactly why Sasuke had been moved into the
mansion and disapproved of it greatly since rushing Sasuke�s treatment could
seriously jeopardize his health- something that wouldn�t help Andrew get the
answers he so desperately sought. Just because the mansion had more resources
than your average medical cabinet did not necessarily make it a better
recuperative environment.
�� She missed Suki, too, but that was still no excuse for
moving a critical patient out of ICU the moment he stayed stable for more than
an hour.
�� Jesus, when he�d first been brought into the hospital, it
had been doubtful he�d live through the night. Rushed straight into the
emergency room after being flown in by a rescue helicopter from the ocean, his
condition had sparked a caustic debate about which ailment to treat first.
There were several immediate threats to Sasuke�s life and treating one could
cause the fragile balance keeping him alive to shift and stop his already
sluggish heart. Honestly, between the severe hypothermia, his later-logged
lungs, the painfully evident trauma to his black and now mostly blue body, and the blood loss, the emergency staff
had been hard pressed to treat the brunette successfully.
�� Hinata didn�t know how he�d survived any of it, she
really didn�t, or how Sasuke was up and walking around now. The ocean, they�d
fished him out of the freaking Atlantic Ocean! Hinata still couldn�t quite get her
mind around how he�d survived the cold waters long enough to be found and shook
her head thinking about it.
�� For almost a month, he�d been on a ventilator and had
more tubes stuck in him than Hinata had ever seen in any hospital patient.
Andrew had given the order to do whatever was necessary to treat Sasuke but
even after all that effort, most of the staff had had little illusion as to
what the mystery teen�s outcome would be, the theory confirmed once Neuro came
down and tested the patient�s level of consciousness.
A
three; when all was said and done after the monumental battle to keep him
alive, Sasuke had only scored a three on the Glasgow Coma scale. He was a
vegetable, a veritable paperweight, until someone decided to pull the plug on
the ventilator breathing for him and there was nothing anyone could do about
it. Even after he had improved enough to breathe on his own and have the
machine removed he had still failed his LOC retest, once again scoring only a
three.
For
all intents and purposes, the kid was dead- his body just hadn�t realized it
yet.
Since
they hadn�t had a name to put on the chart, the nurses tending to him had
started calling him �Sleeping Beauty.� This was a marginal improvement over the
initial pet name, �Sleeping Suki� due to his uncanny resemblance of Andrew�s
missing wife. Unfortunately, some insensitive moron had made a comment about
the name to Andrew and the blonde had nearly lost it. After that the name was
changed and access to Sasuke was officially restricted to only a handful of
hospital employees. Because of this, the wing that Sasuke had resided in had
remained relatively deserted since the only ones who visited the comatose teen
were Andrew�s kids (the only ones that were there in a comfort capacity and
would have lived there if they�d been allowed), Sam (chasing after the twins),
Mary (to check up on her patient), Frank (chasing after Andrew) and Andrew
himself (chasing after his children while checking up on the mysterious young
man).
Pausing
as she ascended the stairs to the second floor, Hinata shook her head and
frowned as a thought struck her. The two male nurses that Sasuke had attacked
upon waking� Neither one should have been anywhere near the brunette�s room
though they had insisted that they�d been sent by Mary.
It
was no secret that Mary loved her nephew�s kids a great deal and was willing to
humor them to no end; if they had come shouting down the hallway days ago for
her to come look at Sasuke then of course she would do so and if she was
unavailable, then she�d send someone else to go check on him. If overwhelmed
with patients, it was entirely possible that she would have just thrown
Andrew�s mandates to the wind and randomly chosen anyone who had been
unoccupied at that moment to go to the appropriate room and check out the boys�
claim that, against all medical reasoning, Sasuke was waking up.
Still
though, it seemed odd; even if Sasuke had been waking up he wouldn�t just lash
out without provocation. The nurses� claimed that he had just leapt off the bed
and attacked them, before fleeing the room to hunt down more victims like some
psychopath. Hinata found this strange but she wasn�t sure if it was because of
the story itself or something else. Maybe the incident had been something more
mundane, like a cultural misunderstanding- it had happened before with another
patient and the hospital had learned the hard way that in some walks of life an
unknown male touching a male patient was a serious taboo.
Sakura
had proven quite well that, even sedated, Sasuke would react if maltreated.
Despite how careful they had been when transporting him to the Pryderi home,
Hinata and Neji couldn�t completely avoid jostling the teenager while getting
him tucked in to his new room. Sasuke hadn�t paid them any attention, hadn�t
roused at all while they had manipulated his body into position. At the time,
the Hyuuga had chalked it up to the medication he was on but now she wasn�t so
sure and, strange as it may sound, thought that on some level, Sasuke was
conscious enough to tell friend from foe. Try as she might, she just couldn�t
convince herself that the brunette was someone who would do something so
violent as to attack someone without being threatened in some way before hand.
Sasuke just didn�t strike Hinata as that kind of person.
Determined,
she took the remaining stairs two at a time and jogged down the hall to
Sasuke�s room. The door was closed, indicating that it was now occupied since
she had left it open before leaving with Frank earlier. Letting out a breath
she hadn�t known she�d been holding, Hinata smiled at her behavior before
lifting a fist to knock. If her instincts were correct and Sasuke was inside he
probably wouldn�t appreciate her barging in so she let him know that she was
present by both rapping her knuckles against the wood as she softly announced
her identity. When no one answered the door, she let herself in, opening the
door slowly in the event he needed privacy.�
Oh, Hell�!
�� Sasuke!?� Again, she was taken by surprise as to how
alike in appearance he was to both Suki and Hikaru. Not as they were now, no,
but how they had looked years ago as teenagers. Swallowing down the nostalgic
lump in her throat, Hinata shook her head and hurried over to the prone form
sprawled on the floor.
�� He lay on his stomach with his face turned away from her,
unmoving. He�d striped out of his top at some point and relief rushed through
her as she watched the pale expanse of his back move up and down as he
breathed. Dropping to the floor beside him, Hinata turned him onto his back
gently with one hand, her free one already on his throat to check his pulse,
tracking the slow, weak beat. Suppressing her worry, she continued her
assessment and addressed a more immediate cause for concern.
There
was blood trickling down his cheek from a cut near his temple, the injury
bleeding heavily despite its minor size. The area around the wound had already
begun to change color to a darker hue, the swelling helping to mark a clear
outline of the size and give notice that the area was going to be one hell of a
goose egg later. Fishing out her handkerchief, she pressed it to the cut firmly
to try and staunch the flow of crimson liquid.
�Sasuke,
can you hear me?� She asked, raising the volume of her voice when he failed to
respond. �Sasuke, wake up please.� She shook his shoulder, the action provoking
a fluttering of his eyelids, and the knot of anxiety in her chest loosened. She
continued to talk to him though there was no further movement from her patient
even when she tried patting his cheek.
�Hey,
Hinata you in here?� A voice from the hallway asked seconds before the door
opened and Andrew walked in. Unsurprisingly still in his pajamas and looking
quite perplexed, he was holding a creased piece of orange construction paper between
his hands as he entered.
�I�m
telling you, it�s not possible!� Hikaru said, obviously continuing some prior
conversation as he followed at his brother-in-law�s heels.
�But
he did! Sasu�Sasu!?� And to add to Hinata�s growing headache, Alex and Brian
came in and immediately raced over to her and their prone playmate, bombarding
her with questions about what had happened seconds before Andrew could do the
same thing.
�I
don�t know.� She told them, moving over to allow Andrew to kneel down beside
her and begin his own examination. �I came in and he was already unconscious on
the floor.�

�Boys,
go down stairs please. Hikaru, grab the pillows off the bed and bring them
here. Hinata, go grab the First Aid kit so we can see to that cut.� Andrew rattled
off the orders without missing a beat, hands already cupping Sasuke�s dark
head, expert fingers searching for other lumps or other injuries that may be
hidden beneath the dark hair, all the while continuing to keep pressure on the
cut on the brunette�s forehead.
�But
Dad�� Brian began.
�Not
NOW!� Andrew barked, unable to contain his annoyance with yet another problem concerning their new
houseguest. He couldn�t see to Sasuke with his kids pestering him and, though
he knew that this wasn�t their fault, he couldn�t help the anger he felt with
the two boys; whatever the trio had done this morning hadn�t helped Sasuke�s
condition improve at all and perhaps had set all back their efforts to nurse
the boy back to health quite far. �Get out!� He ordered, paying them no more
attention once the boys backed out of sight.
Hikaru
and Hinata darted away to follow his commands, both returning seconds later
with the wanted items. Following Andrew�s directions, Hikaru stuffed the
pillows under Sasuke�s legs, elevating them off the floor as the blonde eased
the prone form into a supine position. The idea behind both actions was to
redirect blood flow from the limbs back to the heart and head, the two areas
where it was possible the problem had originated. Hinata brought over a green
oxygen cylinder the size and length of her arm, a face mask and line already
fixed to the spigot, along with the requested medical kit.
�Is
he dying?� Alex�s voice was mournful, the sound coming from behind Andrew�s
shoulder. The adult glanced up and saw that both his sons were just outside the
doorway, the cheeky pair having his order to get out of the room to the bare
minimum. They had done exactly as he said so yelling at the pair for disobeying
him would be pointless; he turned back to his patient and ignored the pair.
Even
though the bare pale chest was rising and falling in a normal rhythm Andrew
helped Hinata fit the mask over the brunette�s mouth and nose, watching the
plastic begin to fog gently after the pure oxygen began flowing. The blonde
checked Sasuke�s heart rate, found it evening out into a normal rhythm, and sat
back on his heels to watch Hinata press more gauze to the head wound.
�Should
he be bleeding like that?� Hikaru asked hesitantly, hovering near the bathroom.
Andrew
blinked, finding the question odd until he remembered that Hikaru didn�t have
much medical training beyond applying band-aids. �Well, head wounds always
bleed a lot no matter where the lac is.�
�The
head has more blood vessels than any other extremity.� Hinata elaborated,
sneaking a look under the bloody gauze. Using the bottle of saline in the kit,
she soaked both the gauze and the cloth of her ruined handkerchief before
gently peeling them away. Studying it critically, she used more gauze to dry
the area thoroughly before covering it with antibiotic cream and an overlarge
bandage.
Andrew
nodded at her work and turned his attention to the large sections of gauze
taped in place over Sasuke�s lower belly. The bandages were peeling away around
the edges and he pushed them back into place with a finger, holding the digit
there until the adhesive stayed put as his unoccupied hand poked and prodded
Sasuke�s abdomen judiciously. No
rigidity, no tenderness, no distention, no signs that the stitches were torn,
no signs of infection. Frowning, Andrew swept his blue eyes up and down the
still unconscious brunette, lingering over the pink lips. He took one limp hand
between his two and held it.
From
Andrew�s right, Hikaru made a disapproving sound.
�Should
I call an ambulance?� Hinata asked, already fishing in her inner jacket pocket
for her cell phone, heedless of the blood staining her fingers.
�No.�
Andrew said after a moment, holding Sasuke�s hand up for her inspection. �His
color�s good, there�s no sign of fever. His breathing and heart rate are both
normal though he�s showing early signs of dehydration. Let�s get him into bed
and hang a line. He�s not diabetic but I�ll put some dextrose in the IV, too,
since it won�t hurt him.�
He
had Hinata put the pillows back on the bed and roll back the bed covers while
he, with Hikaru�s help, picked Sasuke up and got the brunette into bed. Working
with Hinata, it took only a few minutes for Andrew to settle the teenager; they
put him back on the heart monitor and put in a new IV catheter since it seemed
that the old one had been ripped out at some point. The saline drip was prepped
with dextrose and, at Hinata�s suggestion, Andrew also threw a vitamin cocktail
into the mix.
�We�ll
let him sleep.� The blonde said, putting away the penlight he had used to check
Sasuke�s eyes back in the nightstand drawer where it resided. Pupils equal and reactive, no signs of
hemorrhaging, no signs of jaundice. �Neji will check on him while he stands
guard. If he hasn�t woken by tomorrow morning he�s definitely going back to the
hospital.�
�Is
he comatose again?� Hikaru asked in a tone that implied he was vaguely happy at
the prospect.
Andrew
glared at him for a long moment, waiting until he had sufficiently cowed the
other man before turning back to Sasuke. The blonde was acutely aware of his
anxious children waiting for an answer.
Only one way to find out.
�Sasuke!�
Andrew said loudly, almost shouting the name right in the brunette�s ear.
�Sasuke, wake up! Sasuke!�
Dark
eyes snapped open immediately and suddenly the prone form was sitting bolt
upright trying to free himself of the heavy covers spread over his body. He was
nearly flailing by the time he got an arm free to reach up and pull the mask
away, sucking in breath as if he couldn�t get enough oxygen. He looked panicked
as he looked around wildly, searching until his frantic eyes landed on Andrew.
�I
think that answers that question.� Andrew said dryly, unable to keep the smugness
out of his voice. He smiled at the brunette, triumphant as he watched the
teenager�s mouth open to speak. The feeling faded though when, instead of words
coming out, Sasuke began to cough.
�He doubled over not long after, his free hand
covering his mouth and, concerned, Andrew began patting him hard on the back as
the attack continued, trying to and help loosen the obstruction- the kid
sounded as if he were choking on something, making awful wet sounds, body
nearly convulsing as it fought to purge whatever the trigger was from the
brunette�s airway. The fit wasn�t getting any better even with the helpful
thumping and Hinata began making noises about getting him some water.
�Here!�
Hikaru said a bit breathlessly, appearing at Andrew�s side and shoving a glass
of water under Sasuke�s nose, helping the teenager take sips in-between bouts.
Andrew thought the gesture was rather kind- and odd- considering how much
Hikaru wanted the stranger out of the house. He looked at his brother-in-law
and realized he looked slightly shaken by the whole affair.
Apparently
even the most stoic of hearts could be moved to act compassionately when the
person in trouble looked like a missing loved one.
The
coughing subsided gradually and Sasuke slumped, exhausted, eyes shut as Hinata
helped him sit back against the pile of pillows she had hastily shoved into
place. Opening the nightstand drawer again, Andrew pulled out a stethoscope and
began pressing it the brunette�s chest to check his lungs.
�Well,
this is way too much drama for me.� Hikaru said flatly, regaining his composure
and trying to sound superior and unaffected. He eyes the half full water glass
with distaste and mild confusion, as if surprised to find the thing in his
grasp. Apparently, Hikaru�s random acts of charity did not last long and the
blonde mentally sighed, supposing he should be grateful that the overbearing
male had actually taken the initiative to help out at all.
��dump
this out�� Hikaru was saying but Andrew immediately tuned him out when he heard,
and felt, his patient suddenly take a sharp breathe, the heart monitor�s soft
beeping suddenly becoming a clear shriek. The blonde, gaze on the brunette�s
chest, rolled his eyes upward to see what the problem was and found that Sasuke
was looking at something over Andrew�s shoulder.
He
only had time to frown before Andrew was suddenly being knocked to the floor,
narrowly avoiding the arm that shot out to grab the object that Sasuke found so
damn fascinating. Then the world degenerated into the chaos of Hikaru yelling,
Hinata pleading, the kids crying and Sasuke growling.
�Holy
shit!� Andrew whispered, landing beside the bed. He lay on his back and, above
him, Sasuke�s right hand had grabbed hold Hikaru�s shirt. Despite the obvious
loss in muscle tone, the teenager�s thin arm did not shake as he pulled the
other male back towards the bed. Hikaru, unsurprisingly, was fighting all the
way, prying at the fingers seemingly embedded in his pajama top, ordering the
boy to let go.
�Andrew!�
It was Frank�s voice, the man having to shout over the ruckus, and the blonde
turned in the direction that it had come from, scrambling backwards on hands
and knees over the floor until he had a space to stand.
Hinata
was hanging on to Sasuke from behind, the brunette male not paying her any
attention as Hikaru was slowly drawn closer to the bed. The young woman had
managed to also trap Sasuke�s left hand, tangling it in the sheet as she used
her weight to pin the bedclothes in place and keep the teenager on the bed. She
was pleading for Sasuke to �Stop! Stop, Sasuke, let him go!�
The
teen ignored her though and the others in the room, instead remaining focused
solely on the other brunette, determined to drag the other closer. Sasuke�s
face was twisted into a snarl, a ferocious, murderous look in his now red eyes and Andrew had no doubt that
if Hikaru reached the bed he was a dead man.
�Stop!�
Andrew said crossing the distance between his brother-in-law and himself in two
quick strides. Instead of trying to unhook Sasuke�s determined fingers, he
began tugging at Hikaru�s shirt. The blonde grabbed the hem and jerked upwards,
dragging the piece of clothing over Hikaru�s head while pushing the other male
away with a well placed kick. With a curse, the shirt and brunette separated,
Hikaru stumbling backward a bit until he finally tripped and landed hard on his
rear.
For
a moment the empty shirt dangled from Sasuke�s hand but then it was released
and Hinata let out a squawk of protest as the brunette in her grasp dragged her
over the bed as he slid out of it to continue the pursuit.
�Sasuke,
stop!� Andrew ordered, grabbing the teen around the middle and pressing his
shoulder into the brunette�s incision to cause pain. The blonde hated resorting
to such dirty tactics but nothing else was getting through to the teenager. To
his shock and dismay, however, his efforts were doing nothing to slow Sasuke�s
progress; it was like trying to stop a bulldozer in full gear from moving and
the blonde found himself being pushed backwards. Their words weren�t reaching
him- Nothing short of unconsciousness was going to stop the brunette. Damn it! No other way! �Get a sedative!�
�You
want me, you little bastard?� As Hikaru began taunting the teenager from the
safety of the other side of the room, Andrew debated just letting Sasuke go
after all. He bet Suki would forgive him her brother�s death if he explained it
all later.
�Not
helping!� Frank said scathingly and Andrew heard faint movement from somewhere
near the door.
�Bring
it on!� Hikaru continued. �I�m a black belt- you couldn�t hurt me if you
tried!�
When
all of this was over, Andrew decided that he would shove said black belt so far
up Hikaru�s ass that the cloth would become the man�s tongue!
�Distracted by his musings, Andrew was barely
able to hang on to the body he held as Hinata released her grip and slid off
the bed. She immediately went to the table and chairs where the drug safe was
located and punched in the code. And punched in the code again. She had to
punch in the code on more time before the damn thing finally accepted it and
swung open. The rush of relief Andrew felt was fleeting as he watched her
fumble with the vial, her hands shaking too much to hold on to it properly.
Incredulously, she kept dropping it and, once she managed to keep it in hand,
nearly stabbed herself with the empty syringe she was trying to fill. �
Sasuke
surged forward then, drawing Andrew�s attention, and the blonde decided enough
was enough. He shoved the brunette backward, hard, nearly sending the teen toppling
in the process as Andrew pulled back fist. He towered over the brunette and
used the extra leverage to his advantage as he lined up the hit, hips twisting
as he prepared to put his whole weight behind the blow. Hinata was being too
slow with the injection so other, cruder, means were going to have to be used
to knock Sasuke out. Before he could rethink his actions or listen to the voice
in the back of his head desperately shrieking �NO!,� Andrew followed through.
� Time seemed to slow, allowing the blonde
ample time to watch Sasuke glance upward and see the fist speeding toward him.
The brunette�s red eyes with their strange black motes moved to rest on
Andrew�s face and the blonde watched as the irises faded back to their normal
dark color. Sasuke�s stance relaxed, his expression becoming puzzled and he watched
Andrew�s fist come down, making no move to avoid it. Those eyes- Suki�s eyes!- simply stared at Andrew,
unfocused and unseeing, and the blonde realized that, for all the activity,
Sasuke was still asleep.
But
then the second expired and time resumed its normal flow. In the blink of an
eye, Andrew�s fist was smashing into Sasuke�s cheek, the blow knocking the
unresisting teen to the floor but not unconscious despite the strength and
momentum behind it. The brunette simply blinked up at Andrew as Hinata shoved a
needle into his shoulder and held him down until, eventually, the blinking
stopped. ��
As the
blonde watched Hinata check the boy crumbled at his feet, horrible,
excruciating guilt seized his heart.

More�s Moment:
�� Bloody hell it�s about time! I�ve been trying to get this
out for a while but for the life of me, the chapter just wasn�t coming together
as it should have. Made me nuts trying to get all the characters where I wanted
them- of course now I can�t get them to shut up so I can get my suffering
school work done.
�� I have a fifteen page paper due for a class by Monday so my writing time has been
severely impacted. Please enjoy the chapter: I tried to make it long as an
apology for making everyone wait forever. Apologies about that.
�� Next chapter in about two weeks-ish. Have a wonderful
weekend and please review!
�� Happy tales everyone!
- 6
- 7
- 8
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The Banks Of The River Styx