And... the last part of Postcards FMIT. It's been a wonderful ride - I've got a better grasp of writing Neji and Tenten through this entire thing. Sorry about the initial parts being that much of a mess. ;) The HProdigy and PrincessPanda parts here continue from Part 6 of the series (the hurricane arc, if you've forgotten).

Thank you for reading, and especially those who have been reviewing - you know who you are.

Naruto and its characters do not belong to me. Prompts from LiveJournal community 100_prompts.

#481 - Apple

Neji kisses her wrist, and turns her hand over, pressing his lips to her knuckles; Tenten still isn't sure what to feel about him, and them, though her head is clear, and Neji is maintaining enough distance that she can think; "Do you want this to continue?" he murmurs, pale eyes watching hers, and she sees the bob of his Adam's apple as he swallows-

-She remembers their past - the bittersweet, and the pain, the hidden truths and promise in his eyes, and the air is taut between them; "Remind me," she whispers, and Neji leans in to brush her lips with his.

#482 - Darling

It is when Neji is hovering above her, naked, his lips nipping at her ear, that he whispers, "I've never told you how precious you are," and Tenten believes every single word of it, only now, because she sees his desire, and his restraint, and the way his touch feathers along her, waiting for her acceptance; she knows full well the mistakes she's made, that there's a chance they might still be good together, so she cups his face in her hands and brings his mouth closer to hers; "I'm sorry too, Neji," she tells him, and his eyes are warm when he bridges the distance between them, and joins with her.

#483 - Name

They meet again a few days later, when Neji drives to her apartment and picks her up, and they head to a quiet cemetery not too far away; the tombstone Tenten brings him to is unmarked, surrounded by freshly-mowed grass, and as they crouch before it, Neji asks, quietly, "You didn't name our child?"

She remains staring at the flat granite tablet for a long moment, and her expression is solemn when she meets his gaze; "There wasn't a word for us, either," she answers; Neji slips his hand into hers and sets the flowers they've brought at the foot of the tombstone, and for the first time, it feels as if he's surrounded by his very own family.

#484 - By my side

"I can't thank you enough for everything, Lee," Tenten sighs, and gives him a tight hug; Lee returns with an easy grin, and flashes a thumbs-up at her; "Are you happier now, dear flower?" he asks, and he does not miss the rosiness of her cheeks, the way she carries herself a little straighter; "You'll always be my best friend," Tenten promises, though Lee isn't quite sure about that; with Neji back in the equation, however, he does hope that the bonds between the three of them will become tight-knit again, as they once were.

#485 - Mountains

"What are we, now?" Tenten asks, quietly, as they sit on the hood of his car, at the foot of a mountain, and the stars glitter faintly over them; "What do you want us to be?" Neji murmurs in return; his hold on her waist tightens just a little - she presses closer to him for warmth, and breathes the clean linen scent of his shirt; "I-" she begins, I don't know, and exhales, "I'm someone you should talk to before making life-changing decisions," Tenten finally says, and feels, more than sees, Neji's smirk; "Are you going to run the next time you're pregnant?" he probes, and she feels his fingers skim the side of her belly- Tenten inhales sharply and looks towards him-

"I want to have a family with you," he tells her, honestly, and the words etch themselves into her mind; yes, says the little voice in her; "I'll think about it," she tells Neji; he pulls her closer yet, and they fall into contented silence beneath the star-speckled sky.

#486 - Sorry

When the physician has left, and only the three of them remain, Lord Hiashi turns to Neji, who is kneeling by an unconscious Tenten in his futon; she is looking better, her skin not as pale as before, though Neji's expression is tight, and his eyes have not left Tenten; about your father, Neji, Lord Hiashi begins - Neji spares him a glance, and his gaze returns to Tenten; I met him on the dream plane, Neji tells him, Father said he was possessed by a scroll, as I was; Lord Hiashi bows his head in acknowledgement; I'm truly sorry for my actions, Neji, if there was a way I could have prevented it- Hiashi says, remorseful, and Neji interrupts with a curt nod, I understand; that is all there is to their conversation - Neji speaks no further, so Hiashi leaves the room and closes the door behind him, and hopes that the blood he has given Tenten will be sufficient for her recovery.

#487 - Breaking

Tenten remains unconscious for the next two days, and Lord Neji hardly dares to leave her side during this time; he holds her hand and kisses her cheeks, her forehead, and her lips, though she never once responds, and he begins to worry that she might never wake up; Neji begins to talk to her (though he feels a little silly for doing so) in the hopes that she would hear him somehow; it is a long time before his efforts pay off, when her eyelids flutter, and she breaks out of her slumber with bleary eyes and a hoarse voice; Neji, she whispers, and it feels as if a great weight has been lifted from his shoulders when their eyes meet, and he gathers her frail body into his arms.

#488 - Bottle

You said you wouldn't leave me, Lord Neji murmurs in her hair, when Tenten has had her fill of food and water, and she's leaning into him, her back against his chest; she's still feeling too weak to move, and Neji's warmth is comforting, and safe; I didn't leave you, did I, Tenten whispers in return, though Neji's worry and desperation are tangible despite how he's kept them bottled within himself; his knuckles trail over her cheek, and her lips, and he's touching her as if afraid that she would break were he any rougher; I'm fine, Neji, she tells him, I'm fine.

#489 - Snow

He tells her about the river of blood, and the portal his parents opened, and Tenten recounts how she read the scroll when Lord Hiashi could not; Neji looks at her with pride, almost; they bring the scroll to the back of the compounds when she is finally able to walk, and Neji stands aside while Tenten tests the weight of a wakizashi, a short sword; her strokes are certain when she tosses the scroll into the air and shreds it as it falls, and the pieces of paper resemble snowflakes as they flutter to the ground, useless.

#490 - Blind

I have been so blind, Lord Neji tells Tenten, when it is certain that spell and scroll have both been rendered useless, I assumed that my uncle murdered Father with malicious intent; Tenten bows her head, and draws close to him, taking his hand; you're forgiven for thinking that, Neji, she tells him, I think the secret to your eyes may lie with Lord Hiashi, and he blinks at her in surprise, why don't you ask him?

#491 - Crash

When Tenten has regained her strength, and when Lord Hiashi has left them to their privacy in Neji's quarters (shouldn't you take Tenten to be your wife, and hire another guard, Hiashi has suggested), Neji presses his mouth to hers, hungry - her lips part for him on instinct, and it is only when they are in a tangled heap on his futon, with more clothes off than on, that Lord Neji murmurs against her skin, I've asked you this before, and I will do so again - will you be my wife, Tenten?

#492 - Dim

This time, in the shadowed intimacy of Lord Neji's room, Tenten agrees; he frees her hair from the twin buns and presses her into his futon, and as she murmurs quietly against his lips, I will, and he brushes kisses all over her face; the knowledge that they've come so close to losing each other compounds their desire; she writhes against him, because skin on skin still isn't close enough, and he's sliding against and in her, touching her in a way that draws ragged breaths from her lips (they do not stop after the first crescendo that night, nor the second, and it is only when they are drunk with the other's presence that the reality of their entwined futures finally sets in).

#493 - Futile

I will never stop protecting you, you know, Tenten remarks to Lord Neji one evening, as they spar together (her strength has been returning with each passing day, much to Neji's relief); I would give my life for yours, he tells her solemnly in return, to which she frowns; your status makes your life more valuable than mine, Tenten replies, and Neji smirks; not if you're my wife, he retorts smugly, though I would still give my life for yours; Tenten frowns - you will do no such thing, she threatens, and despite the battle of wills, she knows that her protest is futile, because she understands, as well as he does, the sacrifices they would make for love.

#494 - Erratic

"Where do we go from here?" HProdigy murmurs, when he draws away from Tenten, closeted in the guestroom of his family's summer home, the hurricane far from them, and long-forgotten; "You've teased me to no end," she mutters, her eyes narrowed (and she remembers the feel of his lips moist against hers), "I realized that you sent a new vibrator instead of fixing the old one," to which Neji smirks; "It was far easier to purchase another," he explains, "And besides, I've still got the parts from the first," and Tenten stares at him, a deep flush rising to her cheeks; "It was... educational, when I watched you use it," he allows, a dark tint feathering across his face; Tenten reads between his words, and her pulse turns unsteady.

#495 - Loved (Never been loved)

"You know," PrincessPanda begins, her voice so quiet that she wonders if her words can even be heard, "I'm tired of being a virgin," and Neji's eyebrows crawl up his forehead; "I mean, you've been such a damn tease, stripping to your underwear-" she mutters, to which he frowns at her; "You're one to talk, Tenten," he returns, "Of all the times I've seen you prancing naked in your room-"

"-You saw me naked?" she squeaks, and steps away from him, the backs of her calves hitting the guestroom bed, "I thought- I thought you were coding-"

"I was," Neji mutters, his pale lilac eyes burning into hers, "You do a great job of distracting me from it."

#496 - Soft

PrincessPanda seems to consider his words through her intense embarrassment, until her gaze sharpens, and she asks, "What were you doing when you were spying on me?" to which Neji stills; "Nothing," he answers a little too late, and Tenten's eyes narrow; "Really," she presses, and moves an inch closer to him; her next words are spoken so softly that they possess all the more danger for it, "I seem to remember you removing your hand from your pants," she tells him, "On more than one occasion."

#497 - Hold

HProdigy freezes, and holds the neutral expression on his face (because Tenten has hit the nail on its head and he would be damned before he admits to it); "You saw wrong," he tells her flatly, "I must've been scratching an itch," and she scoffs; "Not when you need a change of clothes after every time that happens," she argues, and he blinks, because Tenten is sharper than he's given her credit for; "Is this how you scratch an itch?" she asks, abruptly, and cups his groin with a hand-

#498 - Shackles

-And Neji stares at her, eyes wide, because he's never expected this of her (it's one thing for her to touch his chest, but fondling his crotch outright?); "Are you delirious?" he asks, but he doesn't move, and her hand remains on him, warmth seeping into his clothes; "I'm tired of all this teasing, Neji," she admits, and glances away with a darker flush on her cheeks, though her fingers squeeze lightly around him, and she doesn't pull away; it feels as if he's shackled to the floor when Tenten looks back at him, almost shy, and asks, "Will you show me...?"

#499 - Broken

There is no sweeping of feet off floors or desperate undressing; HProdigy unbuttons his shirt carefully, then his pants, and folds them neatly to a side ("Will you hurry up already," Tenten grouses, and he smirks at her with a raised eyebrow); it feels as if he's moving too slow (she's shrugging out of her T-shirt and jeans and Neji pauses when her bra comes off); "What happens now?" Tenten asks, when they're both naked and sitting on the bed (and she's staring at his chest and abs and crotch like the joints in her neck are broken, and she can't look away).

#500 - Precious

"Perhaps I should've appeared in the nude more often, so you wouldn't have to stare so ravenously at me," HProdigy remarks dryly, and Tenten's eyes snap back to his face, heat flooding her cheeks; she can't think of anything to say, and Neji continues, "Shall we start over?" and her heart pounds in her ears when he crawls over and meets her lips with his, and her fingers tangle in his hair; their kiss is clumsy, though Neji is slow and careful with her, and she realizes that sex may not, after all, mar the precious friendship they have between them.

Hope that's enough of a resolution between HProdigy and PrincessPanda for you guys. ;)

I will be posting some NejiTen oneshots, and also still have that sci-fi chaptered fic in planning, and the photographer story scheduled to update on a weekly basis - keep an eye out for them!