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moorsariasprincy and mspixiepixie for their beta help! Based on an idea I started working on years ago that I picked up again recently.
Pairing: Tobirama/Sakura
Setting: Modern Fae-ish AU
Rating: M
[Part One] [Part Two] [Part Three]
Sakura woke up two days later in a private hospital room. To her surprise, a familiar face stared back at her.
She frowned at him.
“Is that any way to greet the man who saved your life?” teased Kakashi, grinning at her. He patted a vase of flowers on her nightstand and nudged them towards her. “For you.”
Sakura reached for the call button, only for Kakashi to seize her wrist before he gently stroked the delicate skin with his thumb.
“Easy,” he murmured sincerely. “You’re still healing.”
It was then that Sakura took note of the thick bandages around her hands. Her shoulders sagged as she stared crestfallen at the wraps that likely covered and protected her stitches.
“Your torso also has a few new scrapes. You need to be careful when you move,” said Kakashi.
“Scrapes?”
“A few jabs from your knife.”
“I stabbed myself?”
Sakura thought back to the crazy night on the cliff and realized that yes, it was entirely possible she had and hadn’t realized it at the time. She had been reckless as hell during the last stretch.
“Chicks dig scars,” said Kakashi supportively
“Great, now Ino won’t be able to keep her hands off me.”
Kakashi chuckled.
“Stop nudging the vase closer, they’ll fall off. Who sent them?”
“How could you ask such a thing when I’m right here?”
Sakura winced as she sat up and scooched toward the right side of her bed. “That card has Nami’s handwriting on it,” said Sakura flatly.
Chuckling more awkwardly, Kakashi leaned back and rubbed the back of his head. “Caught me.”
Sakura leaned back against her pillows and watched Kakashi for a moment before a small smile curled at the corners of her lips. “I always do,” she murmured.
A gentle peace settled between the pair as Sakura relaxed and Kakashi rested his arms on the top of the chair back. It was backwards and he straddled it casually while Sakura’s eyes took in the cards, balloons, flowers and myriad gifts that were piled on the floor and counters.
“Was I really in rough shape?” she asked.
Kakashi’s eyes softened, telling Sakura all she needed to know.
A look down at her arms confirmed she wouldn’t have her hands inside anyone’s chest cavity for a very long time.
“How are you here? Only family is allowed. Not that I don’t appreciate the company.” She narrowed her eyes at Kakashi. “Or did you sweet talk one of the nurses…?”
“I told them we were engaged. Enough of them remembered me to believe it. By the way, the announcement set off some kind of betting pool the night nurses had going.”
Sakura froze. “You told them. What.”
“Technically, you never said no.”
“Because you never asked.”
“Right, about that…” Kakashi’s voice drifted, before continuing gruffly. “I found the ring.”
Sakura looked down at her bandaged hands, wrapped up like oversized, puffy mittens. “This isn’t a good time.”
“I thought you’d say that. I put it on a chain, so you can wear it around your neck.”
At this, Kakashi pulled out a long rectangular jewelry box that had been hiding behind Nami’s flowers.
Sakura’s stomach bottomed out as her heart skipped in her chest. “That’s not funny, Kakashi,” she breathed.
Kakashi shrugged his left shoulder, holding her gaze. “Neither was Saturday night,” he returned quietly. There was a gentleness to his words she’d rarely heard from him before. “I don’t need an answer right now. I know the next few weeks are going to be busy for you. By the way, you have a bunch of fans wanting to meet you waiting outside,” he said, tilting his head toward the door.
Sakura looked at him, her heart in her throat.
“I just wanted to be the first one you saw,” he grinned at her from behind his medical mask.
Sakura’s brows furrowed. Something else clicked in her mind. “Why are you wearing doctor’s scrubs?”
Kakashi chuckled awkwardly, glancing at the door. Rapid footsteps could be heard approaching.
“Kakashi…”
“Time for me to head back to work. Ino’s bringing your replacement phone for you tonight… Uh, if anyone asks, she’s your sister. As your fiancé, I vouched for her.”
Sakura’s jaw fell open in disbelief. “What have you been doing—”
“Toodloo~!”
Sneakier than a fox, Kakashi nipped out the door and away from her room seconds before the door flew open again and Tsunade burst in.
“What in the realm’s seven HELLS did you do to yourself!? Was Kakashi here? Is it true you’re engaged? Did you hit your head on those rocks, you idiot apprentice?!”
Sakura groaned as she sank back into her pillows
Kakashi, you asshole…
*****
Kakashi visited Sakura again the next day. He brought her favourite take-out. And chocolate cake. She hadn’t opened the jewelry box yet. Her head was a mess. She blamed the painkillers (for now).
*****
Sakura woke the third day from her first truly restful sleep since her last night at the cabin. Smiling to herself, she breathed in deeply the scent of pine needles and frost, forgetting she wasn’t in the forest.
“Forest Friend?” she murmured, her eyes fluttering open.
Her hospital room was empty. Sakura knew she should be grateful for the peace, but for just a second, she had thought...
Something tickled her ear and Sakura shifted in the hospital bed. A tuft of snowy white peeked into her peripheral vision. Her breath caught in her throat when she rubbed her shoulder to her cheek and felt the softness she recognized from one thing and one thing only.
“Tobi… rama…?” whispered Sakura.
More confused than ever, Sakura scrutinized every inch of her room to no avail. Afterward, she stared at the ceiling of her hospital room until her nurse arrived to track her vitals followed by the orderlies with breakfast.
She cursed her wrapped hands and her inability to stroke the fur collar with her fingers.
*****
The better part of a week passed before Sakura was released from hospital. The news had been full of her ‘selfless, daring rescue’, to her chagrin. Fortunately, Tsunade had enacted Martial Law, keeping Sakura’s name out of the news. It would have spread like a forest fire; if one person got wind of her name, everyone would have known it, and Tsunade understood that very well. She prevented any leaks by threatening the staff with bedpan duty for a year if they so much as breathed anything about Sakura’s name, personal life or condition to the press.
Tsunade may have been furious with Sakura for being so careless as to get into such a dangerous situation, but she wasn’t about to let her hospital turn into a media circus.
The families of the young men Sakura and Tobirama had found had all tried to meet her personally, but Sakura had begged for privacy and anonymity. It turned out the boys had been on a hiking trip for their high school graduation. They really were just babies caught in a storm. Tsunade related to Sakura that all had made brisk recoveries, likely due to their youth, with only minor lingering injuries. Nothing a few weeks of physiotherapy wouldn’t heal, except for the one boy with the broken nose. He was investigating options with plastic surgery.
At that, Sakura bit her lip and tried to look sympathetic. She didn’t think she fooled Tsunade, though.
Ahem.
Sakura’s hands didn’t fare as well as the boys’ health, unfortunately. She and Tsunade booked her reconstructive surgeries in cycles, planning around her and Tsunade’s schedules to ensure director-level coverage would be maintained at all times. The trouble arose during the equinoxes and solstices.
Tsunade frowned at the calendar dates on the tablet.
“We’re going to have to hire to fill your position on a rotational basis,” stated Tsunade.
“I’m sorry,” said Sakura. “You know I’ll put everything into my recovery.”
“Don’t apologize. You saved the lives of those boys. We’ll make it work. Think of who you’d like to fill your shoes in the meantime. We’ll look internally and externally,” said Tsunade. “But focus on yourself.”
Sakura nodded.
Seated poised and at ease in the chair beside Sakura’s hospital bed, Tsunade flipped through several more slides of her agenda while Sakura packed up her gifts and cards in the lidded cartons Ino had dropped off earlier that week. Ino had promised to come help Sakura pack that day after work, but Sakura was restless and needed to move. Beneath the bandages her stitches tugged when she moved her hands in certain ways; it was a welcome distraction from certain other things that had been plaguing her mind.
“What’s this? Did one of the boys’ families send you another gift?”
Sakura turned around just as Tsunade lifted the jewelry box Sakura had been avoiding all week. Sakura’s eyes widened as she opened her mouth to object, but her old mentor had already opened the box.
Sakura swallowed.
Neither woman spoke for a long moment.
“I—” began Sakura, but she didn’t know what to say.
Tsunade shut the box and set it aside again, pretending to ignore it. She looked thoughtfully at the fur collar Sakura wore around her neck instead. She hadn’t let it go since the moment she woke up with it cradling her shoulders.
“We have time. Let me know who you decide on,” said Tsunade.
She picked up her tablet and slid it into her bag before she stood, tugging out invisible wrinkles in her lab coat.
“He…”
Tsunade’s stare was level as she looked down at Sakura. “If you have to make excuses or think too hard about it, it’s the wrong person,” she said, holding Sakura’s gaze.
Lifting her chin, Sakura nodded.
Tsunade held her gaze a moment longer before heading towards the door. “Stay in touch. Are you heading home tonight?” she asked.
“For a bit,” said Sakura.
Tsunade’s honey eyes glinted knowingly as she looked at the white fur stole around Sakura’s shoulders. “Have a good weekend,” was all she said. Whatever that meant.
Against her will, however, Sakura’s cheeks warmed. “You too,” she called. “Thank you.”
Tsunade waved behind her as he left, leaving Sakura’s door ajar.
Peeking her head around the corner, Ino’s sky blue eyes caught Sakura’s. “So are you going to tell me who left you the engagement ring or do I have to guess?”
“How did you know what was in there?”
“I peeked when you were napping. It’s pretty. Do you like it? Do you like him?”
Sakura’s stomach curled with discomfort. “Could we pack up? I’d like to spend my night somewhere a little more familiar tonight.”
“I notice you didn’t say, “In my own bed”, which is very interesting. Would you care to elaborate?”
“Not right now.”
“You will send me his address and name, right? For safety?”
“I’m going back to the forest to relax for the weekend,” said Sakura.
Ino balked. “You’re what? Are you kidding?”
“No.”
“Sakura, you can barely hold a pencil. You have to use voice commands just to turn on your phone. You’re felled by a snap or button. Can you even zip your own jeans?”
“I’ll be fine in yoga pants. I know my way around. There’s…” Sakura knew it was a double-edged blade confessing to Ino that she would be staying at Tobirama’s. She decided on a half-truth. “There’s a cabin near the forest that I stay in. I won’t even be camping. It’s just to get away from anyone who may be lurking near my house for the next little bit.”
Like the media. Or certain unusually patient exes.
Ino frowned. “Are you sure? I can stay with you for the weekend. Sai and I brought your car back to your place. We stuffed your freezer with pre-made meals. You just need to heat them up in the microwave. You can eat everything with a spork,” said Ino. Her voice was carefully controlled, and Sakura recognized her best friend’s concern.
“You have a baby, Ino. I’ll take the food with me. Along with a bunch of disposable sporks so I don’t have to wash dishes.”
“Is there a dishwasher at this cabin?”
“I can load my dishwasher when I get back. I won’t ruin your Tupperware.”
“I’ll just throw a Hero Party in your honour and earn hostess rewards if you do,” said Ino. “Do your worst.”
Sakura grinned.
“Where did you say this cabin was?”
Sakura bit her tongue. “By the Founders Forest. The road didn’t really have a name.” It wasn’t really a road, either, but Sakura didn’t think that would help her case or attempt at independence. “The owner’s only around in winter, so he said I could use it anytime I wanted outside of that. It has indoor plumbing.”
Ino nodded. “You won’t need any help taking your stuff out there? You can’t really carry much at the moment.”
Ino must have read the hesitation in Sakura’s expression because she waved Sakura’s concerns away.
“I have it covered,” assured Ino.
*****
At eight o’clock that night, Sakura wasn’t sure if she thanked Ino or cursed her as she dragged the kiddie wagon train full of supplies behind her on the forest trail. It had oversized tires which navigated the rocks and roots better than Sakura expected, and the baby-guard-rails and sun canopy kept her things in order.
Sakura just felt like a pack-mule as she adjusted the extra wide, padded, strap-slash-harness (courtesy of Ino’s resourceful sewing skills) that went around her crosswise and allowed her to pull the wagon without using her still-healing hands.
The first thing she was going to do when she got to Tobirama’s cabin was dump all the food in the freezer. Then she was going to eat the take-out she bought on her way to the Forest. Then she was going to eat at least a third of the chocolate cake she got herself, because she had damn well earned it, and fuck the calories. Then she was going to—
A brisk wind suddenly knocked Sakura backward, the weight of the kiddie wagon supply train dragging her back. Her arms pinwheeled for a second until she regained her balance and breath.
Sakura blinked in surprise until she caught the whiff of pine needles and frost. Then a flurry of snowdrops erupted at her feet as an excited smile broke across her face.
Tobirama...
“I’m home.”
*****
“There’s no need of the stove,” said Sakura as she made one trip after another to bring in and put away her supplies. She dragged the wagon, one segment at a time, up onto the porch so it would be sheltered from the elements.
From the counter, a tea canister rattled and Sakura grinned.
“I’m mistaken. Obviously there is one need for the stove, and that is to boil water for tea. I can do—”
As soon as she approached the stove, however, it was already lit and warming.
Sakura shrugged, shaking her head. “I’m not an invalid!”
Silence.
Sakura pursed her lips but let Tobirama have his way. Biting her lip, she looked around. “Tobirama?”
Silence.
… though a gentle breeze ruffled the hair at her nape.
Sakura’s sigh was soft.
“At least we had the time we needed to help the boys,” said Sakura wistfully.
So Tobirama couldn’t speak to her for the time being, in words at any rate. Hopefully there would be another time, soon, that they could talk.
As Sakura drank her tea and unpacked her bags, she relayed to Tobirama what had happened after the helicopter rushed her and the hikers to the hospital. She told him about Tsunade protecting her from the media, how Ino had helped her get ready for her weekend, how her friends had come by to drop off gifts and visit.
“Even Nami—who’s doing well with her newborn son, by the way, on her maternity leave—sent along a nice little arrangement. It was like waking up in a garden every morning,” chuckled Sakura as she relaxed on the sofa. She leaned her head back, smiling. “It’s not the same as waking up here, though,” murmured Sakura.
Silence.
“I want to listen to you speak more next time,” said Sakura into the empty cabin. “I want to learn more about you and what you like. I remembered more about you, I think, in the hospital. I kept thinking about the Forest, and all my trips here, and…Now that I know what you feel like, I remember you being there with me.”
Her smile tilted down faintly in the corners as she wrapped her hands around her warm mug. Outside the cabin the nocturnal bugs had come out to chirp, the peeper frogs to sing, the occasional owl to hoot as the wind blew through the trees. They were such comforting sounds to her. But there was one sound she longed to hear above all.
“I miss your voice,” she murmured.
Silence.
But then a gentle draft stroked her hair beside her ear, warmth caressing her cheek as if cupped by a large, warm, male palm, scented like pine and ash from the woodstove.
Sakura closed her eyes and leaned into it.
“I miss you, Tobirama.”
*****
Sakura unpacked her evening bag in Tobirama’s bedroom, as she always did. When something fell out of the bag and landed on the comforter, however, she froze.
Her eyes widened as her cheeks burned.
Good for what ails you, and voice operated through your phone! Guaranteed to help you lose your worries for a good, looooong time, read Ino’s immaculate handwriting on the sticky note. By the way, I charged it for you and the app’s already downloaded to your new phone. You’re welcome.
Ino had already removed the shrink wrap for the toy and Sakura swallowed.
She couldn’t…
She couldn’t use that here.
Tobirama would know.
Tobirama would…
She eyed the toy speculatively. It looked kind of fun, actually. She wanted to try it. Ino had never steered her wrong when it came to things like this either. And, to be honest, she really could use a release after being hooked up to machinery and monitored all week. Hmmm….
Sakura bit her lip, picked the toy up and looked at the instructions more carefully.
100% waterproof! boasted the instruction sheet.
She doubted Tobirama would watch her bathe. He was the gentlemanly type, from what little she’d literally seen of him.
Still. Voice operated…
“Um, Tobirama? I’m going to have a bath. I know you won’t peek, but, um, no, uh, listening, either? Please?” called Sakura, blushing furiously.
Silence.
Then she heard water filling the nearest bathtub followed by the cabin doorknob rattling.
Assuming that was Tobirama’s way of letting her know she had her privacy, Sakura, with her face still burning, carried her towel and shower caddy to the bathroom.
*****
Water sloshed over the side of the tub as Sakura bit her lip to muffle her release. Panting hard, she let the toy continue just a bit longer, her head falling back and her hips rolling as she enjoyed the aftershocks the steady vibrations provoked in her.
“Pause,” gasped Sakura after a second release crested in her and quickly crashed, pushing her over the edge again.
Her chest rising and heaving in the steaming mineral water, Sakura closed her eyes as the toy inside her mercifully stilled.
Yes. It was exactly what she had needed. Her limbs languid and her body exhausted, Sakura let herself drift for a moment, sinking into the blissful water in the bathtub. Her heart pounded in her chest and she breathed deeply, enjoying the tingling throughout her body and extremities. She hadn’t enjoyed something that powerful since…
A gray eye and deep, chuckling masculine voice. Messy, silver hair clutched tight in her grasp. Her hips undulated forcibly as she rode sensual lips and the most talented tongue she’d ever encountered in her life. They all flashed across Sakura’s memory like a shooting star that, at one point, she’d wished upon, in spite of how terrible they were for each other, or so she kept telling herself.
It hadn’t been that bad, though. She had just been busy with work. He had responsibilities with Search and Rescue. He hadn’t always meant to stand her up.
Lost in her thoughts, Sakura exhaled soundly.
The toy was amazing. The reminder of the jewelry box she had left on her nightstand at home, though, that…was more complicated.
Carefully shifting her hips, Sakura adjusted the toy inside her as her channel squeezed around it, happy to be filled for the first time in over a year. She nudged it to where she was still most sensitive, enjoying the pressure as she rocked it inside her, just a bit longer. Anything more in that particular spot would be too much, but after such satisfying orgasms, teasing it a bit felt blissful. She left it inside her as she stared at the open-beamed ceiling of the bathroom.
At the sink, her toothbrush rested in its own rinsing cup, Tobirama’s beside it. In the shower, her shampoo and conditioner had a place beside his. Her colourful loofa hung from the taps while a pile of his washcloths were stacked on the rack built into the wall. It was rustic and functional and Sakura had meant it when she called it ‘home’.
The bathwater began to cool, and Sakura sighed. More time had passed than she realized. Glancing at her phone, she saw how late it was.
“Already after ten?” she said aloud, not thinking.
Then the best/worst thing happened. Her phone, still open on the toy app, recognized the words “ready” and “ten”.
The toy, still fitted intimately inside Sakura—even more sensitively after her adjusting it—vibrated to life at its top setting.
“W-wait, no—” gasped Sakura, her eyes flying open.
Toomuchtoomuchtoomuch—
The tendons of Sakura’s throat stretched as she clenched her teeth, her hips rounding unconsciously, rising and falling and moving of their own accord, faster and faster, then jerkily as the first coil inside her snapped and she yelled.
“Oh—oh god—!”
Blinded by the force of her orgasm, Sakura hadn’t even caught her breath before the next wave hit, stronger than the first since it built upon it.
She meant to warn Tobirama away, to tell him not to come back yet, to ignore her yelling, but it was too much. Her words were garbled from her violent release and the thought of Tobirama while in the throes of her third orgasm conjured him in her mind and suddenly all Sakura could imagine were Tobirama’s hips between her legs, his intense crimson eyes holding her gaze as he forced her down upon his thick, glistening—
“Yes, Tobirama, yes, fuck—ngh!” shouted Sakura, eyes clenched shut as water splashed around her onto the floor.
The room flooded with a sudden gust of wind and Sakura’s eyes flew open, realizing what had happened.
“No! Out! Stop! Pause! Oh my—”
The vacuum Tobirama’s immediate departure created stole the air from Sakura’s lungs as she lay sprawled in the tub, legs splayed, toy finally silent, and her embarrassment creeping up her chest, neck and face in wicked flames.
“Shit,” whispered Sakura, swallowing.
Her head fell back against the tub with a gentle thud.
As soon as she could feel her extremities again, she would…do some damage control. Maybe.
An aftershock had Sakura whimpering and trembling helplessly.
…it would be a little while, though.
*****
After cleaning up the bathroom, Sakura slumped into Tobirama’s bed. Then sighed, picked herself up, and went to get the one thing she always needed before she fell asleep each night. Once acquired, she crawled into bed again, nestled under the covers, and was out like a light.
She was so deeply asleep, so quickly, that she missed the soft sigh of air that blew across her bangs and the fur collar she clutched tightly in her healing hands.
*****
After that night, anytime Sakura would go for a shower or bath, she heard the rattling of the cabin door as Tobirama made his escape.
On the third day, Sakura turned to the bathroom then halted. Her shoulders sagging, she shook her head.
“It’s…it’s okay,” she said to Tobirama in the room at large. “I didn’t mean to make things awkward. I’m sorry I…” Sakura winced. In one way, she was grateful she couldn’t see Tobirama, but in another, it was hard to talk out loud about this to an empty room. “I just really needed it. You don’t have to go.”
Silence.
“I also didn’t mean to offend you when I…called out your name. When I…you know…”
Silence.
Sakura swallowed. “Thank you for worrying about me, though, and coming to check on me. If something had been wrong, I appreciate that you would have cared.”
“Of course… I care…”
Sakura spun around, searching for Tobirama, but only his voice echoed in the room.
Taking a deep breath, Sakura nodded. “Thank you, Tobirama.”
Silence.
Shrugging her shoulders, Sakura went to take a shower. It was only when she lay in bed that night that she realized that she hadn’t heard the rattle of the cabin door at any point during her shower.
Smiling and stroking the fur collar, Sakura drifted off to sleep..
TBC
