TO LOVE AND TO LOVE AGAIN

BLOOD BONDS

To Love and to Love Again Chapter 24: Blood Bonds

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER AND AUTHORS NOTE: I do NOT own Naruto. The awesomeness of the Naruto Manga and World is the creation of Masashi Kishimoto. This is Purely Fanfiction. All things Medical in this entire fanfiction should not be taken as serious medical advice or facts. PLEASE CONSULT AN ACTUAL DOCTOR FOR ANY MEDICAL INFORMATION/QUESTIONS. THANK YOU AND ENJOY!

All he could see was darkness. The figure that was holding the sharp edge of the blade was nothing but a silhouette. It was scary. Now there was red on the floor. He looked to see where the red was coming from. There was a person on the floor. The bad man hurt her.

His mommy was hurt and he couldn't save her.

The bad man looked at him. Now he was coming towards him with the blade. His mommy was still on the floor and she couldn't help him.

No one could save them.

Sasuke opened his eyes and looked straight ahead.

Sleep never did come quickly for him. The only recent exception was due to the company of one emerald-eyed physician, who was currently sleeping beside his equally emerald-eyed daughter. Sakura and Suki's rhythmic breathing and serene expressions were security enough that they were safe from the world.

He was always attuned to the aura of the people around him. Years of underground training from his previous life had ingrained that ability into his DNA. It was probably for this reason that he stealthily got out of bed and walked out into the hall.

Someone in this house wasn't sleeping so peacefully.

He heard whimpering coming from Sora's room and opened the door to find the boy about to fall off the edge of the racecar bed. With one more turn, Sora's body swung off the edge and right into Sasuke's steady hands. Sora woke with a weary panic.

"What happened?" Sasuke asked.

Sora thrashed in a panic for a moment before realizing it was Sasuke. He looked down and stared at the floor as he tried not to cry. Sasuke saw his body shake. He must have had a nightmare. He steadied Sora on the floor and knelt beside him.

"You had a bad dream?"

Sora nodded and released a sniffle. He didn't want to cry in front of Sasuke. He had to be strong, because his grandfather told him he had to be. He wanted to be brave in front of Sasuke too, but the dream was really scary. Sasuke ruffled his hair.

Dealing with nightmares was new to him. He didn't quite know how to handle it. Sora was like Suki, always trying to act brave. Children shouldn't have to protect their parents. That wasn't how the world worked.

"What did you dream about?" he asked. Sora sniffled and began to shake even more.

"The bad guy came… (sniff)… and he h-hurt…Mommy," he sniffled as the tears fell. "And then… (sniff) he tried to hurt me."

Sasuke placed his hand on Sora's head. "It's okay," he soothed, realizing that the break-in had a much more devastating effect than he knew. Sora was probably having recurring nightmares. He was sure that this was not the first time he had dreamt about it. "I won't let it happen again okay?"

Sora wiped his eyes with his fists and sniffled once more. Sasuke lifted him up and walked with him down the hall and into Sakura's room. She stirred when she heard the door creak. She focused her eyes in the dark and saw Sasuke walk in with Sora in his arms. She carefully detached herself from Suki's little form and got out of bed.