[FANFIC - HBD, KARIN!] PÉRIODICITÉ (SK)
Title: périodicité582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7x2tOnEaYS
By: Kanae (Goth-Punk88 @ ff.net)582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlt3GqtuDIU
Rating: K+582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqVRs61ADKQ
Word Count: 2.817582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkEnXvhstyk
Author's Notes: Made for our "Karin's birthday week" over at the Ice&Spice FC @ NF ♥ I... don't even know what this is, or where it came from, and it's possibly one of the cheesiest pieces I've written for SK. But I kind of regret nothing lol - Oh and that novice drawing at the top of the fic? yup, mines. guilty as charged orz582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb5CfWM1XWB
Summary: June 20 has never been an ordinary day for one Uzumaki Karin.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS65anjdM2U
périodicité (periodicity)582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuYb1X80aZ2
"recurrence at regular intervals of time."
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsHKxwedUvD
périodicité;582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡolELajRvG6
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyOWMEiELjU
by Kanae
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZYlIyLGhsI
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmkMradwK8E
“Don’t look so down, darling. This is a great chance for you.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCwfZWOh6Wr
“…Yeah… a great chance to make a fool of myself, you mean.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3FbvNEfNkl
A twinkling laugh, a delicate hand warmly lands over a girl’s head and—
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3NfM9bXF0a
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2z7PFdvjrA
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbWj53V6N4V
At twelve, there aren’t many things that Karin has done or that she wishes to do. She is just an ordinary girl from an ordinary family living in an ordinary village; there is nothing special about her, nothing out of the norm, nothing that makes her stand out—if one ignores her flagrant red hair, that is.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIQKShOx3oZ
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡleB9hMTvOO
But that is just what her father seems to have wanted to do all along.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwAjsJDUULx
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTk93HHA4BI
You’re going out? Don’t forget to put your hood on, Karin, he would say, whenever Karin had to wander away from the immediate realms of their home. Why, papa? She used to ask when she was no more than a little girl; but that was a habit that slowly but surely withered and died as she began to grow up—as she started to grow aware enough to notice the wary air her father’s kind, wise red eyes acquired as the reminder left his lips.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdgeTs1DwFs
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7DGC6dtB9R
As she grew older, Karin learned to recognize it for what it truly was: more a warning than a piece of advice; and she began to grow more jittery as result, more worn at the seams.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGhFkPRdLxn
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ88tJsYOppf
Her red hair was her only outstanding trait, the only thing that made her different—without it, Karin may as well fade into the scenery.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGI34gfdjvf
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtsARsEgVbL
She may as well not exist.
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrfW2peRkW0
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH9KImpRhRj
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGa2kuSApbp
—and ruffles her hair.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBpQ5BcPWPs
“Now, now, don’t be like that. I have a good feeling about this, you know?”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡph7eBf4uhT
“…What do you mean, mama?”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0vNRrWMvaF
A secretive smile highlighted by—
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0JFz6spr0Y
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpB2521VMHF
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGMi3l3K7vy
At thirteen, Karin nearly dies.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPavXuFDw1N
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmAPLXSFFMP
And then she is saved—saved by a striking boy with a rich voice and eyes that warm her up to the core the moment he smiles—at her, for her—and suddenly, Karin does not feel so ordinary anymore.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡylK9lYNNHV
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLELlJfoNiG
There is something different about you, her mother tells her once with a knowing smile, ever since you came back from Konoha.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1CPulz8YxH
Karin jumps in her seat, awkward denial bubbling up in her throat and evaporating the moment her mother laughs, I like it. You look prettier, Karin.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWH82Ltmj0p
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsAlqgUbjZv
She does not know about that—can’t see any difference as she looks at herself in the mirror, self-consciously pulling on some strands of red hair and squinting at her reflection.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGwTzW8C9sC
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg8zGh6Hsmp
What she does know, though—what she can’t forget, is—582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgQCizeKCxX
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMoWFJC5DtF
See ya, he had said, and it takes Karin a surprising amount of time to realize that, for the first time since she could remember, there was something she wanted.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNWBM1jJIE1
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIkFfNKRsfq
Wanted for herself; not for her parents, not for those she cares about. Something that was completely hers, in all its staggering intensity and youthful hope.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS7wsJcchwG
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtyHFPiWT29
See ya, he had said, and until then Karin had never quite known how good it felt to feel alive.
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeVytwGVlZS
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeD173yjzz8
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ77QU1aoUcI
—by amber eyes that seem to spark.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6QXj7H238I
“Ara~ I wonder if I should tell you. It is a safely guarded secret, you see.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡptf8BavkyU
“I will keep it! I promise, I won’t tell anybody, mama!”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6nV7WuFdsi
A chuckle, “Alright, alright! Since you insist, I'll tell you. It—”
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhXAkl8XbMC
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjFv9R5WrU0
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTsUFw6TZQy
At fourteen, Karin breathes her last breath.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3Zd4vkwPnh
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjJ8Mau2hBO
There is no blood—not hers—involved, nor are there any wounds—not physical ones—or any white walls or tunnels and gates of light—no light, only dark—only smoke—only the smell of burnt flesh and intest—582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcY15Yo7NJP
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHH33xqQfYu
There is, however, anguish. An agony so great that Karin bit her lip until it bled, fisted her palms until her nails left permanent crescent-moon shaped scars in the contours of her skin, new batches added to already cracked life lines.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBiT3dyeVR3
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhH83gY29O5
There are silent, chocked sobs that made her throat burn and her sight blur until she has ran out of tears.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzhLyPdzUe9
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7WL9QnXIz5
And there is also horror; a burning, paralyzing sort of horror that reaches its peak and fades into a mute but perpetual tune stringing the chords of her being as she comes back and stares at the corpses of her father and mother, unrecognizable masses of ashes retching of burnt blood and bodily fluids that make a pile of vile crawl its way up to her tongue.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe5M9CoWseN
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIqKSE69rkq
And then, there is he—sidestepping the man with ominous dark chakra and extending a hand towards her, onyx eyes boring into her own with the same might with which the understanding in his chakra drove her horror away.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2oWNzslacP
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡprmr6nXK0P
You staying here will amount to nothing, but you leaving just might, he says. Come, Karin, he calls.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhqmCvuc338
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgR74PsksrB
She takes his hand, and there is hope.
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnmJvUbLPVf
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa18lMQAKwt
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Pr5VShAnR
“—It is said that one too many women in our family have found their fate in the lands of Konohagakure.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNPv541Fqcn
“Their… fate?”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2dMIhDdL98
Her voice curls up around the edges, as if it were a spell.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdvbuwnSnCV
“You will understand in—”
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn43O5HbaIe
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy1IhCAa2rt
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpXpt8awgvQ
At fifteen, Karin has shed her skin.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfZPxw7vcO7
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz6Ap3Pxw5D
There are now sharp edges where there used to be soft contours; angry frowns where there used to be kindness, smirks where there used to be smiles; buoyancy where there once was shame, barriers in what once were vast landscapes—and there are also scars.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡweT5pfMHRd
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO2ethZRMfz
Tell-tale scars of the Karin she used to be and new, revolting ones from the Karin she has become. She hides the latter and denies the former; pretends they’re long gone, never aching, never hurting anymore.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6sy5U2lQNd
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO32dt38o7h
Yet, he sees them all. As if she wore them on her sleeve.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPB4xu5Qjvz
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGHqsvhieSx
“Say, Sasuke, since we’re alone how about we—”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3eOc3PhLNE
“I have to leave soon, Karin.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlqvUUrqsPq
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcQDIfoq8Rt
She puts her glasses back on and crosses her arms with a frown, moving away from him. “Why did you even bother coming, then?”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFXiCF4OKwT
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWhSw4d3a13
Sasuke says nothing, then. He says nothing, and Karin straightens, her back suddenly assaulted by gooseflesh; could he—?582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAjW2uRzP7O
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB2Wn7RUCQ7
Could he have possibly known? Known how before his unexpected arrival, Karin had been hounded by her memories. Seeing familiar faces in the nameless prisoners of the base, ghosts come back to haunt her and pull her down with them to the depths of hell—a hell made of nothing but flames and guilt of mistakes she is not sure she would take back, even if she could.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8v4bBmlGs6
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmaebFM8fye
“…I had business here, is all.” His voice reaches out to her through the haze of her thoughts, pulling her back with nonchalant words that seemed devoid of any meaning.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmrbzPMiiuv
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr7ApijQONP
But as she turns and her eyes meet his, Karin sees.
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXZ6Ul24NQI
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOH2xqUPhxQ
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2QMDv31Pda
“—in due time, Karin.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUODyNBCVIp
“Still, mama… it just isn’t fair.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4aAIIbAie7
“What isn’t, dear?”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVvxiQwwoxV
“… I wanted to spend my birthday with you and papa.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo6OiwyJDsI
Her smile—
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKFnOGsvNfg
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoYZaAJfYQK
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9omEt0xV2i
At sixteen, Karin falls.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCuF8QzgLeD
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfMkz0bkILl
She falls from a great, great height at appalling speed; she hasn’t even had time to acknowledge the abysm before she has hit rock bottom, her goals and dreams spilling through her open chest and pooling on the ground alongside everything she knows.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvCiv7ZTssv
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoKFiHsntk7
Alongside everything she once held dear. Everyone she relied on. The one she trusted.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC74Hz9c3iA
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAQROYlou0s
Now, there was no one left.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFFVdRNoOv7
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2ZwYo6gAwY
No one left but the roaming, empty carcass of the boy she once loved; the boy who taught her what it felt like to be alive, the boy who gave her hope and helped her find meaning back when she had lost her way, the boy who helped her to be reborn from her ashes into someone better; someone stronger, someone capable of standing up for herself and for him, too. The boy who flared her will and her drive with a single touch, with a single look, with the simplest of words—582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0G18yHMSM0
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ291lBC8uDZ
I need you582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTKzmgr5Rkt
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6rh3lbOlAU
“So much for that,” Karin mutters to no one, her back pressed against the cold walls of a cell and her fingers absentmindedly tracing the ghost of the wound that had taken her heart out for good.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrckQHag1Ft
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUiFor7uL27
And then it comes. An almost unnoticeable flicker—too subtle to be perceived, but too longed for to be ignored.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdllPksp0xO
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzpZjEbTotj
No… I’ve had enough, Sasuke but her withered heart is trying to beat again, and it makes up her mind for her.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQe9MaGhc0y
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5I2i7mYF9d
“…So much for this,” Karin murmurs to herself—and then she is on her feet again, her inner eye tracing his every move.
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHgluU9MjMr
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZwt5d1zDnY
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7fiMQgJF2i
—melts.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv7tywrX9bg
“Cheer up, love. There will be many birthdays left for us to celebrate together.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJZsjTWYnE6
“… You promise?”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpPQfSCM5pi
Her gaze softens.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ3Pt2Lv3eT
“I promise.”
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5oBEB2B3aS
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfEGOMrZwBZ
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡflKMFX39kb
At seventeen, Karin kisses him.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpEYGd3d90e
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdSVX1g0DoG
She impulsively crashes her lips against his, her arms thrown around his neck in a desperate attempt to hold onto him—to anchor him down before his essence could have the chance to fade into pitch black darkness again, to feel him before he could have the chance to waste his life—her life, their future—chasing phantoms all the way to the death.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWifnqsvDTr
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLVX39noRsi
When the impromptu kiss ends, Karin sees him—the him she knows, the him she loves—flickering across his eyes for the briefest of moments, and she hears her name resounding in her ears even though he has not uttered a single sound.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyXtYRdMcBf
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDtriynqo1G
She smiles ruefully; trembling eyes boring into his—and then wordlessly lets him go.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzsfox5LuNQ
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5eyMJR37E2
She has given him a reason, but the choice is his to make.
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUmFMi0DOzg
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMSx7sVp8C1
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaSxd8M9J5N
“Ha, so it was about a boy, I knew it!”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ38QxQBUlX2
“Shh, mama! I don’t want papa to hear! And… it’s not like I’m ever going to see him again, anyway….”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAGe2UGjeFg
Her mother has to hide her smile, “Actually, Karin… something tells me you just might.”
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAloXECKiBp
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIHI14vGwNS
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMJyULQ2YJZ
At eighteen, Sasuke kisses her back.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgCIDfQG0S4
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLsdx1PtZDV
It is not nearly as passionate as her—their—first kiss had been; there is no desperation, no adrenaline—but there is craving all the same, waving through the serenity threading over her through the gentle pressure of his fingertips over the nape of her neck, enveloping her like a makeshift cloak and warming her down to her very core.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb6HiLe61aH
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡufslw3cnYg
And Karin feels her very essence quiver under it—under the warmth and the way her heart seemed to want to leave her and jump into him instead, to claim the home it has always longed for; the home it has always fought for.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBxSuXpGlGK
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo4wh8Z9CkK
The home it belonged to.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI5pJB1da6O
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGp6Jpk1Rg9
As he kisses her, sunrays clumsily dancing upon her lips, Karin feels like she would vaporize into him if Sasuke were to take a single breath.
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwL3BGUst5w
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡToPHGhtSri
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgbjGoMbeYH
“How do you know?”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb5BJpYqdUd
“Because, that’s how fate works, Karin.”
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpodQMbXmJV
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwnoEHTGfFu
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq380CFawrU
At nineteen, Karin smiles.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmmP0OtL1at
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTPZl4JZfsG
“Itachi,” she says, and Sasuke looks up to her, startled. “The name… Itachi. That’s what you wanted, isn’t it?”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVo5o7iumKz
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsoGEthRMqB
Sasuke parts his lips—once, twice—but no sound comes out and soon enough he gives up altogether, lowering his eyes to stare at the bundle in his arms. It stares back at him, impossibly red eyes widened with innocent curiosity, pink tongue sticking out from underneath rosy lips.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDGx28kbr1d
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡczCkS8FjNR
“Are you sure, Karin?” he whispers after what seemed like an eternity, and Karin’s smile only widens.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQp4hS2RwMx
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw8uHiG8HYt
“Yeah.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ60GXJBwLbn
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtipV7SYFv6
And as she sees them—as she sees Sasuke hold their baby as if he were holding the whole, wide world in the crook of his arms—Karin remembers her mother with such vivid clarity that she catches a breath of her perfume. The memory—the vision is bittersweet, and it makes Karin’s throat clog, because she recognizes that look.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYynMzYv5SR
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAbNcU5qf8t
It was the way her mother used to look at her father and her, eyes brimming with love and pride, unspoken but ever-present, never changing. Karin had not been able to understand it, then—582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMkLzCF9ACy
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡclXgkEmkgH
But she did, now. And the understanding squeezed her heart in a way that was both, wonderful and terrible. To think it took her this long to finally understand, once and for all, what it all meant.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9Q3Um1V4O6
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2c436tSygQ
To understand who her mother truly was, what her mother felt, what her mother desired for her—and how her mother hurt.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOXzehmSGTs
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8So9II6YLK
You’re special, Karin. She would tell her sometimes, her eyes half-lidded and afflicted by thoughts she would never get the chance to say aloud. One day, you will realize that.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuG3EnUt0iC
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNIWbjIFXlU
She realized it, now; what it meant to love to her roots, what it meant to be a woman.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwavkwYlUiG
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsqlx1fY6ka
An Uzumaki woman.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQLH2ZJLKU3
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcUKK2Uxbd8
“… Thank you, Karin.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjJVkuYq78j
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhbJSJomgmp
“Idiot,” she shakes her head, weakly, traitorous tears prickling at the corners of her eyes and threatening to spill. “That... should be my line.”
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrGXSMER1R9
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsUreD4jCHo
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgKr38eNO1t
“They will be here soon,”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpNtJ8zvkmz
“Who will be here soon, mama?”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqt1EE3Eije
“It could be anyone,” she finally replies, and her hold is steady as she combs through Karin’s hair, “we have long since lost any care for their identities, Karin. What matters is… what their presence means.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmMkFSyi3ps
“And what is that?”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHtSfNw5Gr0
Her silence provides the only answer; and Karin wishes it weren’t enough.
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh1Xblqrvy3
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ahEEmarAA
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIYMlBVuYXm
At twenty, Karin celebrates her birthday for the first time in seven years.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOcEcrUr4y2
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡizS0VmRnUf
And it starts with a soft but firm admittance whispered as she caresses the baby’s nose, all too aware of the pleasant weight of Sasuke’s gaze, of the feelings swirling in his chakra.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHP8aZZUDdm
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkZw9x0weX7
Hearing them is unexpected, however—and her widened eyes snap to his only to find his lips beginning to curve, his own hand coming to caress her cheek in much the same way she was doing to their son.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3bLaaIpCw1
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDt1jS76RH6
“W—what was that about?”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFJENsCtbdR
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLA3IPEpnn2
She asks; some habits are hard to break, and her awkward way of fighting down her embarrassment seemed to be as persistent as ever.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHXfxqL3AYY
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMe7ETalpWX
Sasuke doesn’t seem to mind, though. If anything, his smile seems to morph into an amused smirk as he shrugs, noncommittally. “I just felt like saying it, is all.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWxZF7AlYsu
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTIOOpQZ8qd
“Dumbass,” she mutters, hoping the darkness will hide the way her cheeks have warmed up like bonfires, so reminiscent of her prepubescent days when all she could do was a dream she would one day lay with Sasuke the way she does now. “...You didn't need to.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcCxOMqQG6p
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjiAIJyKv73
“I know, Karin,” and this time he is positively smiling, suddenly mutating back into the Sasuke that had stolen her heart so many years ago. “But it still felt good to say it.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7mZK9AtS6i
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIpzM3SoLsJ
Karin says nothing in response; simply snuggles closer to him, eyes on the baby as he opens his eyes and blinks, his little hands curling and uncurling up into the air.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIXu53mdtTQ
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIfv1SWF1M9
“He is going to be strong,” Sasuke assesses, and Karin would have mocked him by how ridiculous it was that he sounds that proud of Itachi when the baby hasn’t even said his first word yet, weren’t it because she felt the same way.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOATeQIgjk3
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbcOq3mlopg
He was going to be strong. A little piece of herself and Sasuke—a memento of those who had given their life up for them; a torch for those who had granted them the chance to live this moment.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUTDY4GaP47
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHXAOkPBv2A
To live this happiness.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcsXDMu63u7
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ55SHIuSFo
“Happy birthday, Itachi,” she whispers, and squeezes Sasuke’s hand. “I love you.”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKuIcYOjmcu
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs0e2tDAWsh
The words feel dusty, and unknown—but familiar.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQCFSYkk3K7
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRhk3efvbdF
She knew them, once.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdbS73bCmXY
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnBZNRPIyeW
She has known them all along.
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSB72tKsBnu
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJwc7W2E2CP
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7ujyI20B0q
I'm sorry, Karin.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmXE7T5NvWW
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcB6iwWwLd5
Were the last words her mother told her before her father ushered her out of the house and prompted her to run—run as far as she could, away from them—and forced her to leave them to die.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWb0kb6xc7n
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡceok3LtMzM
To survive.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡumB0RXTGW8
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNN9seYQ3jW
Those words used to hunt Karin down in those nights when sleep refused to lend her its hand, the eerie walls of Orochimaru’s hideout caving in on her and Sasuke’s steady chakra being her only relief, her only shield.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwmULljpPHk
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvHpqTTVLmT
Yet, what haunted her weren’t the words themselves, but their meaning; Karin had instinctively known then, just as clear as she knows now, that her mother was not apologizing for forcing her to forsake them and live on.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVSjv5EYTqM
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2QChfpyKuW
No, that was not it—that was not the kind of woman her mother had been.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTeyZ3EhgxD
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxdOT8J78ZC
Instead, she had apologized for something else entirely.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCKKRUvYX6A
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5iw8CgH2ah
For the unsaid.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡERY98KbTgG
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlcmGF82uWN
“What are you thinking about, Karin?”582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkvzRezp5ZV
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjLrqxN5QVN
Her lips curl upward as he takes the seat by her side, repentances fading away into the evening sky.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc5NcQ9iyww
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS31RRbyXXn
“Nothing,” she replies, threading her fingers through his and gazing back to their children, who were laughing and running together through the backyard, a lively mixture of reds and blacks; the Uchiha and Uzumaki crests proudly etched on their backs, on their hearts.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBeMqzlSZCu
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiKvvejeyyM
“Nothing at all.”
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4jJvqmOhVu
.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfejIkAcxfU
.
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3DNOZuQO1a
"You will be fine."582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5pwusGRCOk
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm8LQ0qOenF
And through the tears and the pain and the loneliness and the longing and the hardships and the fear, Karin should have known better.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhUqYzQDHEk
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuC2DXGQKAB
Her mother was always right.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2q1w00Oz9d
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2TNVOFlIPz
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjd78XERExP
-582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTjiSprZXf9
end.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF49roVTU3B
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx1XAE8kURG
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtkaH09NtOV
I... seriously don't know where all this came from; my best guess: Uzumaki feelings. Uzumaki feelings everywhere. lol, I tried to play with the different facets of Karin, and how she grows into each one of them; plus SK, of course.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMXtAeJPRlV
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB9trAPicUc
The stuff I wrote here is not quite how I see things going, though; to do that I would have had to write about 395749574 vignettes per year, rather than only one lol so I went for rushed versions of a couple of scenarios I had thought about.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlTQVHNsNMb
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKFx8OK9Ue0
Oh and while I did not state it in the fic: every vignette takes place on Karin's birthday, so the baby was born on June 20, too.582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqtKPilCDw7
582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB5NpPluZ4O
Anyway, hopefully, it wasn't that terrible! ♥582Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbx3auVISjI
tags: fanfic, karin, naruto, sasukarin, sasuke
i'm : 
cheerful
listening to: never let me go - florence + the machine
ns216.73.216.82da2
