Blood Stained Lilies

A/N
- Well I am back to bring you yet another chapter of BSL. I think you
all will enjoy this chapter.

Sorry
about the wait... life happened... I meant to update before
Thanksgiving and my birthday, but I got my wisdom teeth out and was
out of commission for awhile. Then Thanksgiving came along and then a
few days after my birthday ((20 now, woo hoo..)) and then finals
started.

In
fact I went back and forth between this and my final paper for Moral
Problems. So much fun.

Well
hope you enjoy.

Un-beta’ed...
up for the job? Email me. My email should be in my profile... I think...

---

Chapter
Six: Family

---

“We
all grow up with the weight of history on us. Our ancestors dwell in
the attics of our brains as they do in the spiraling chains of
knowledge hidden in every cell of our bodies.”

-Shirley
Abbott-

---

“Cut,
cut, cut!” The girl walking across stage, huffed, and threw her
hands up in frustration.

“Again?”
She stopped at the edge of the stage. “What am I doing wrong this
time Sasuke?”

Sasuke
sighed and shook his head. He was really not in the mood to deal with
anyone today.

“Just
start from the top Tenten.” She just looked at the boy who sat in
an empty row of the fairly large auditorium. It was another Sunday
morning that meant another trying day of rehearsal.

“No!
I will not start from the top. First my hair wasn’t right. Then I
wasn’t putting enough emotion in my voice. Oh and lets not forget
when you yelled at me to stop being girly. Sorry to disappoint but I
am a girl and I am playing a girl. What was it this time? Are my
boobs too big for ya? Prefer me to get rid of them?” Tenten
continued on with her ranting.

The
girl in Sasuke’s opinion was like a loaded pistol. It was not smart
to pull her trigger. Then again he never really heeded that advice.
The two of them never really got along. Sasuke was too demanding and
Tenten was too free spirited.

It
was always like this when ever Sasuke had to direct one of the many
plays they performed a year. He always had problems with Tenten along
with two others he rather not think about right now. Sasuke sometimes
wondered how Shakespeare did it. He never used woman in his plays and
that was his secret. The lucky bastard didn’t have to deal with
their PMS and constant mood swings.

“Are
you insulting my girlfriend again?” Sasuke didn’t even have to
look up to see who had spoken. He would know that irritating
indifferent tone anywhere. “I rather like her boobs the way they
are.”

“Hyuuga.”
Black eyes bore into pale violet as Sasuke finally turned his
attention to the man next to him. It had been awhile since the last
time he had seen Neji but he couldn’t say he missed him.

The
two of them got along relatively well, but Sasuke couldn’t say he
enjoyed the boys company. Although it was a known fact that Sasuke
didn’t enjoy anyone’s company.

“What
brings you here?” Neji took a seat next to Sasuke. The theaters
chairs were fairly comfortable and he allowed himself to lay back and
relax; smiling when Tenten waved at him.

“I
just came to pick Tenten up. We are supposed to go do some early
Christmas shopping. You know how she is, has to get everything done
early.”

Sasuke
frowned. The last time the two went shopping together for the
holidays they had gotten him books on over coming depression. Of
course it was a gage gift, they had also given him a gift card to a
store he had like at the time, but the joke was not taken well.

He
had ended up sulking the rest of the day and glaring at anyone who
dared to try to bring up a conversation with him.

“Oh,
don’t tell me you are still sore about last year. It was a harmless
joke.” Sasuke was ignoring him, focusing his attention on the
actors who were currently all on stage lying about waiting for
orders.

“You
all are dismissed. Practice will resume tomorrow after class.” He
waved his hand in dismissal. They all began to file out of the
theater leaving Sasuke alone with Neji.

“Can
you just forgive and forget, we are family after all.” Sasuke shot
him a look. Their relation to each other was not often brought up and
even avoided at times. It was a taboo subject and the fact that Neji
had brought it up so casually had shocked him to some degree.

“We
are hardly family.” It was the truth. The only thing that pointed
to them being related was the blood that flowed through their veins,
but that too didn’t seem to be enough for Sasuke to call him
family. There was one big difference between him and Neji.

Neji
had human blood running through his veins. He was the child of one of
Sasuke’s mothers first sons. She had courted a human male producing
the hybrid lineage of the Hyuuga’s.

Technically
speaking Sasuke would be considered Neji’s uncle, but that would
never be the case.

“Hn.
True, but still we can not escape our past.” He looked at Sasuke
his eyes softening for a moment. They had indeed been through more
hardships than he would like to recall. He had been with Sasuke
during his family’s slaughter and during the loss of his love.
“Hinata has told me you have a new roommate. A blue eyed blond that
goes by the name of Naruto.”

“What
of it?” The theater had grown sullen in the ominous atmosphere.
Even Tenten who had come out of the dressing rooms moments before
retreated backstage. She did not want to interrupt what ever the two
had been talking about.

“Is
it really him?” Sasuke was unsure how to answer. Neji after all had
been the one to originally introduce Naruto to him. They had been
close up until then, from what Sasuke remembered. Naruto was the only
one who could ever make Neji smile.

“It
is.” It was all he could say. No doubt Neji would be effected the
same way he had when seeing the blond boy again after so long.

“Hm...
I thought so. After hearing Hinata talk about him I knew that it had
to be our Naruto. She is rather fond of him you know.”

“What
do you mean?” He had noticed the looks the Hyuuga girl had been
giving Naruto but he never saw it as anything other than her normal
shy looks that she gave anyone who she was nervous about approaching.

“Well
I would have to say you might have some competition this time
around.”

“You
better be sure she stays away.” Neji had to laugh at that. A
melodious tune in the quiet theater.

“Don’t
get angry, after all she does not remember that he once belonged to
you. She is not cursed as we are.” It was one of the blessings of
being born with human blood. Hinata might have been a vampire but she
was not cursed to live a never ending life through memories that
would never fade. She was one of the lucky ones of the Hyuuga line,
unlike Neji who was burdened to remember for eternity the horrors he
had witnessed.

Hyuuga’s,
because of their human blood could be born with or without
immortality. Those condemned to the curse were placed into the clans
branch family who served as a guardian to the ones blessed with
mortality, and if they inherited the thirst fro blood then they would
be there to help them through the transition.

Neji
had been the one to help Hinata through many of her lives, lives she
had never know she had lived.

“Still
I won’t let her interfere. I am having enough problems as it is.”

“Oh,
is the Uchiha charm finally failing?” Neji received a rather dirty
glare. Unfortunately he was completely unfazed.

“I
wish that was the only problem.”

“There
are more?” Sasuke didn’t like the fact that Neji didn’t seem
the least bit surprised about this.

“Hn.
When he first came here he despised Leben, calling us all monsters
for the most part. Thankfully he has put those thoughts behind him.
We are more or less friends but...” Kiba came to mind along with
the words he had spoken last night. “It seems this Naruto is not
into men.”

Neji
raised a delicate eyebrow. This was something he had not suspected.
When a soul is reborn it still carries the same characteristics of
the person from their past lives. For example someone who had been
shy in a pervious life would still be shy in their next life.
Although the shyness can vary a bit from life to life.

So
it only made sense that Naruto would be gay in this life since he was
obviously gay in his last life.

“That
can’t be right. Naruto has to be gay, at least to some extent.”

“Hn.”

“What
gave you the idea that he isn’t?” There had to be a good reason
to cause Sasuke to believe this. He wasn’t one to fall for things
unless he thought them to be true.

“His
friend came by to visit last night and decided to stay the night. He
caught me watching Naruto is his sleep. The bastard started spewing
crap about how Naruto wasn’t gay and that I would only be hurt if I
sought more than friendship from him.” A growl of frustration
erupted from his throat, causing Neji to smirk. It wasn’t everyday
you saw an Uchiha so roweled up. “At first I brushed it off
thinking he didn’t know what he was talking about. But now that I
think more about it I can’t help but see that its true. You should
see the looks he gives Sakura, like she is some jewel. I hate the way
he looks at her body, he was only supposed to look at me like that.”

“Sasuke,
despite what the current facts might say I don’t believe that all
hope is lost. He loved you once so he can love you again. You just
have to remind his soul that he loved you. It might be hard but it
can be done.” It was times like these when Sasuke appreciated Neji.
They might not admit to being friends but at least they cared enough
about each other to be there when needed.

“Neji...”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks.”
He gave another one of his rare smiles before getting up for his
seat.

“Well
I better get going. I spent enough time chatting away with you.
Tenten is going to kill me if I take any longer.”

The
two said there goodbyes promising to meet up later so that Neji could
reintroduce himself to Naruto.

But
for now Sasuke would ponder Neji’s words and hope that he could
find some truth in the jumble of words.

---

When
Sasuke finally made his way home he was looking forward to some peace
and quiet. He needed time to think and possibly curl up in a chair
and finish the book he had been reading.

Upon
opening the door all his plains for that day flew out the door as he
entered.

Yells
and laugher could be heard throughout the house. One scream even made
the glass of a near by picture quiver. It was one that was taken last
year during a trip to the beach. Sasuke didn’t care for it much and
was slightly put off that it hadn’t fallen to the floor broken.
Yes, he was in that bad of a mood. In fact he now felt like breaking
the picture himself, but resisted the urge.

Coming
into the livingroom he tried to ignore the commotion upstairs but it
only caused his growing headache to worsen.

‘What
the hell are those idiots doing up there?’
He asked himself, not sure if he really wanted to know.

“Dammit
Naruto. I am so going to castrate you and make you choke on your
balls.” Now that was defiantly Sakura and by the sound of things
Naruto was a dead man. So the question still remained what did the
blond idiot do?

“Naruto,
I think she means it... I think its best to haul ass and hope for the
best.” Kiba’s voice came drifting down the stair case along with
the unmistakable sound of stampeding footsteps.

“NARUTO!”

“Shit...
Sakura it was a just a dare... come on... it was only harmless fun.”
Naruto was obviously trying to beg for his life. Sasuke, after
knowing Sakura for many years, knew that words would not be enough to
calm her raging self.

And
like Sasuke had predicted, Sakura was not giving in. “Naruto, I am
give you till the count o five to drop them or you are so fucking
dead... 1... 2...”

It
didn’t take long for Naruto to respond. By this time he was almost
to the foot of the stair and in plain view for Sasuke to see. He
looked a little raged around the edges like he had just wrestled a
bear.

“Ok
Sakura... I give up... don’t kill me...” What came next Sasuke
had not seen coming. Apparently Naruto had been caring the object of
Sakura’s anger and said object was now on a collision course to
Sasuke’s face.

Sasuke
stiffened when soft silk met his face. ‘What
the hell?’

The
other occupants of the room stiffened and turned their gazes to him
when they finally noticed that Sasuke was among them.

Naruto
stood, along with Kiba, trying to hold in his fit of giggles.

Sakura
on the other hand was as red as a tomato. Never in her life had she
been so embarrassed. Oh and out of all the people why did it have to
be Sasuke. She was absolutely going to die.

Sasuke
hesitantly brought his hand to grab at the offending cloth. His mind
was racing to figure out just what it was. Not many thing were made
out of silk, at least not that he knew of.

Holding
it in front of his face, he studied it. Taking in it small shape and
frilly trim.

As
realization dawned on him, Sasuke could feel the heat pooling in his
cheeks. No wonder Sakura was so pissed. The idiot had stolen her
underwear.

He
was so going to die. It was one thing to take the underwear in the
first place, but he crossed the line when he decided to peg Sasuke in
the face.

“You
moron... I am going to kill you.” And thus began the great chase.
Sasuke swiftly tossed Sakura her panties and made a mental note to
scrub his face extra well tonight. He then preceded to track Naruto
down with promises of a painful death. After all no one got away with
throwing undergarments at an Uchiha.

Unfortunately,
or fortunately depending on how you look at it, Sasuke was stopped by
an irritated Ino who had an exam to study for.

They
ended up receiving a lecture on respecting peoples things, before
going their separate ways.

Kiba
finally head home to Sasuke’s pleasure. He could only take some
much of the boys warning and knowing looks. Not to mention Naruto and
Kiba together was an accident waiting to happen.

He
wanted so much to prove Kiba wrong. To rub the bastard’s face in it
when he could once again call Naruto his.

Now
the only thing that remained was how to go about doing it.

And
even if Sasuke managed to win Naruto over, would he still want him
after hearing the past that they shared and the wrong Sasuke had
committed.

Keeping
the past from Naruto was not an option for Sasuke. He could not lie
to the boy, nor would he live a lie.

That
though was in the far future. He would worry about that when the time
came.

For
now he would focus on winning the blondes heart.

---

Things
began to slow down for Sasuke as the small holiday drew nearer. The
play had finally premiered and got great reviews according to the
student paper.

Sasuke
could really care less either way, or so he told himself. He was just
glad it was over. It was a pain trying to work with people as hard
headed as the group of actors he had been given.

Sometimes
he wondered if it would just be easier to just say screw it and let
them do as they wished. Though being an Uchiha kept him from doing
just that. Anything his name was connected to had to be of the
highest standards.

If
it said he directed a play then that play better be damn good or god
forbid the consequences.

It
was over and he would rather keep it that way. The last thing he
wanted was to remember all the migraines he had received because of
it.

Now
he had only the break to look forward to. It would be a chance to
relax. He wouldn’t be doing anything, he never did.

To
him Thanksgiving was just another pointless American holiday. It was
just another excuse to bring families together. So to him it was
pointless. He had no family to go to and never would.

The
whole idea of it pissed him off, so he had decided that the holiday
would just not exist for him. Just as ‘family’ did. It was a word
that meant nothing and carried with it no warm thoughts.

Sighing
he put the book he had been reading down. Tomorrow was Tuesday and
their last day of class and then he would be free to leave this
place.

Sasuke
would travel to his empty home and spend his time in silence. Maybe
that was why he was drawn to Naruto so much. The boy just seems to
lighten a room and cheer a sullen atmosphere.

“Sasuke!”

‘Speak
of the devil.’
Naruto came bounding out of the kitchen waving what seemed to be a
cookie.

“What
is it? I was reading.” He tried to glare but Naruto seemed immune
to them or maybe he just didn’t care.

Naruto
ignored the harsh tone not letting it get his spirits down.

“You
have to try these cookies Hinata just made. They are like the
greatest hunks of chocolate doughy goodness I have ever—”

“Enough!
I don’t like sweets.” Sasuke cut him off. Scratch what he had
said about Naruto earlier. He had no clue why he liked the boy. He
was nothing but a headache.

“But
Sasuke...” A pout formed on those kissable lips. Naruto was just so
cute when he pouted.

“No.”

“Aw,
Sasuke your no fun. Can’t you lighten up.” Sasuke just ignored
him preferring to go back to reading his book. He could hear Naruto
shifting from foot to foot as if he was wanting to go on with his
whining, as Sasuke would like to put it. It would have been rather
annoying if Sasuke wasn’t already used to such things. After all
when you lived with Sakura and Ino you had to learn to tune things
like that out or you would go insane. Sometimes he thought they did
it on purpose just to see if they could get a reaction out of him.

He
even swore the kept count on how many times they could get him pissed
over small things like the tapping a finger or the popping of gum.
He might just have to ask them about that now.

“Na–
Naruto... the next batch is r–ready.” Hinata poked her head out
of the kitchen, signaling that it was time for Naruto to return to
his duty of being the official taste tester.

He
gave Sasuke one last look before inhaling the cookie and making his
way back into the kitchen leaving Sasuke to himself. Sometimes Naruto
could just not understand the guy. One minute he was friendly and
talkative and the next he was a bastard with a stick of ice shoved up
his ass.

“So
Hinata which ones are these?” He looked at the tray of fresh from
the oven cookies. They smelled delicious and made his mouth water.

“Snicker
doodle...” Was the mumbled response.

Naruto
looked over them trying to find the biggest before gobbling it up in
two large bits.

“Oh,
Hinata they are the best.” She blushed at his complement.

“If...
y–you like t–them... I can make you a b–batch to take home
wi–with you. I h–hope your... family will like them...” Even
though Hinata didn’t mean to, she had cut him deep with those
words, but how was she to know about his current lack of family.

He
had told no one except Sasuke.

He
had tried not to give the issue much thought, but as Thanksgiving
neared it was hard to ignore the excited conversation that spread
throughout the school about the coming holiday. Although he had tried
not to show it bothered him, he had still become more quiet and with
drawn when ever the holiday came up.

Yesterday
though he had received a call from Iruka saying that he would be
spending Thanksgiving with him.

It
might not be what Naruto wanted, but still it was something. It
somehow made Naruto feel wanted and loved. Like he had a family
again.

‘At
least I don’t have to spend it alone.’
He thought.

By
this time Hinata was watching Naruto with worry. The boy was not
usually this quiet. Had she said something wrong?

“Naruto...?”

“Hmm...
Oh sorry Hinata. Of course I would love if you made me some.” She
flashed him a shy smile and set of too work on the next batch.

Knowing
he wouldn’t be needed anytime soon, Naruto decided to bug Sasuke
again. Maybe this time the bastard would talk.

Coming
back out into the living room he saw Sasuke sitting in the same
position, reading the same book.

“So
what are you reading?” Naruto asked, taking a seat on the armrest
of Sasuke’s chair.

He
looked at the blond, not bothering to put his book down.

“Edgar
Alan Poe.” Was the short reply.

“Figures,
it somehow fits you.” It was the truth, after all Sasuke reminded
him of a raven for some reason.

“Oh,
you think so.” Sasuke put down the book and eyed Naruto with
interest.

‘Yes
got him to put the damn thing down.’
Naruto cheered mentally.

“Well
yeah. I mean his stories are dark and mysterious and what not... and
it just seems to fit you.”

“Hn.”
Sasuke looked back to his book, getting ready to pick up were he left
off. Naruto saw this and began chatting again.

“So
what are ya doing for the holiday?” It seemed to be the generic
question of the week so he decided to go with that.

He
got shot a dirty look and was ignored.

“Sasuke?”

“I
won’t be doing anything... after all there is no point in
celebrating a holiday when you will be alone. There is no point in
it.” And it was the truth, as depressing as it maybe.

“What
you too?” Naruto’s eyes had grown soft. How could he forget that
Sasuke had no one either. Though he would have guessed that Sasuke
would have someone to spend it with considering how popular he was.

Just
then a though can to mind. Maybe he could change that for Sasuke.

“Hey
since you obviously have nothing better to do. Why don’t you come
with me to Iruka’s. I am sure he wouldn’t mind having you?”

Iruka?
Last time Sasuke had seen that man was when he had a check up a few
months back. He had no clue that he was the one to take Naruto in.

“Hn.”

“Oh
come on Sasuke it will be fun.” Sasuke knew that this would be a
good chance to get closer to Naruto, yet at the same time it felt
like he would be entering his own personal hell if he were to give
in.

To
bad Sasuke could never say no to Naruto.

“Fine.”
Naruto gave a loud whoop and preceded to grin like an idiot.

And
that was how he found himself seated in Naruto’s room at Iruka’s
house.

The
room was rather plain with white walls, a bed, dresser, and a window.
Somehow it just didn’t fit the loud boy.

“So
what do ya think?” Naruto plopped clumsily on the bed next to
Sasuke.

He
looked around the room studying everything before answering. “It
nice... although rather plain.”

“Yeah,
it needs so color.” Naruto agreed, he had been planing to put some
posters up or something but felt funny putting whole in the walls
since it wasn’t really his house.

Sasuke’s
eyes began to wonder again, taking in the nicknacks that were
scattered about. Some CDs laid here and there, clothes were scattered
about, and a books laid in a pile by the bed. One of them stuck out
to Sasuke, it might have had something to do with the be ‘Do Not
Enter’ sticker stuck to the front.

Letting
his curiosity get the better of him, Sasuke picked it up and flipped
it open. He was met, much to his amusement, of pictures with a small
toddler with bright blond hair and blue eyes. One picture on
particular showed the child in a highchair with baby food all over
his face.

Naruto
noticed what had suddenly caught Sasuke’s attention and almost died
in embarrassment.

He
made a lunge for it but Sasuke was too fast and snatched it away.

“Hey
give that back. Don’t look at those.”

“Oh,
but why not, you are such a cute baby.” Sasuke teased with a smirk.

Naruto
made another grab for it, this time snatching it away. Sasuke went to
grab it back at the same time cause him to fall forward on the bed as
Naruto fell backwards.

With
a squawk Sasuke fell on Naruto who held the book above his head.
Sasuke was holding onto it was well which brought his face to hover
above Naruto’s.

They
both laid there panting from the exertion not bothering to take in
the position.

Sasuke
was the first one to notice the intimate closeness. It was like some
many times before now, when he had Naruto would wrestle about and end
up making love in the end.

Naruto
looked up at Sasuke and noticed the faraway look in his eye. He was
beginning to feel uncomfortable with the position.

“Sasuke?”
It was a breathless whisper caused by his lost breath from the
horseplay they had been doing before.

Hearing
his name being spoken like that was not help Sasuke’s resolve. He
need to get away from Naruto before he did something he regretted.

Before
anything could be done, Naruto decided to wiggle a bit since one of
his legs was falling asleep.

Sasuke
lost it, how could he not when he felt the body he knew so well move
against his own after so long.

Deep
onyx eyes looked into cerulean pools and he couldn’t hold back any
longer.

“Naruto...”
It was said with so much raw emotion that Naruto froze. Not only was
it the first Sasuke had ever said his name, but it was the first time
he had ever heard his name spoken like that. It sent chills down his
spin and gave him a sense of comforting familiarity. It was like a
lullaby that served to calm his nerves and confusion.

In
that moment Naruto felt closer to Sasuke than anyone before him.

Even
as Sasuke closed the gap between him and firmly placed warm lips upon
his own in a sweet and loving kiss, Naruto didn’t any panic only
contentment and a desire for something that he had long forgotten but
was sure Sasuke could give him.

Sasuke
was in heaven, but in the far reaches of his mind he knew that he had
just paved his way into hell.

With
the way things were going this was going to prove be an awkward and
embarrassing holiday.

Sasuke
only hope he would be able to make it out alive with out losing
Naruto.

---

To
Be Continued . . .

---

A/N
- Feedbacks great.

Thanks
so much for all the reviews... I will try to reply to all of them.

Thanks
for reading and I hoped you enjoyed it.

-Akiru-