Passing Fancy

By TwinEnigma

Warnings: Crossover, Character Death, AU, alternate character interpretation

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Peter Pan, nor do I make any profit from the writing of fanfics for same.

It began as such stories often do, on a dark and stormy night, while the adults were away and children ought to be sleeping. Indeed, such was the case of the Orphanage at Number 7, Bridge Street, run by the young Mr. Asuma Sarutobi and his wife.

The young couple had inherited the orphanage from Mr. Sarutobi's father, a kindly old man known to all as "The Professor." He dearly loved children and could not bear the thought of their suffering. The Orphanage at Number 7, Bridge Street, was thus created to give the unfortunate orphans of the area a home and family. The Professor devoted his life to the children and, when the beloved old man finally passed away, his son, Mr. Sarutobi, could think of nothing his father would have wanted more than to continue caring for the children as though they were his own.

It was tiring and daunting work to care for all the children, full of happy moments and wonder, but Mr. Sarutobi and his wife soon craved a bit of a respite. Mr. Sarutobi had scrounged and saved for many months and had, at long last, procured tickets to the theatre Mrs. Sarutobi so dearly loved. Entrusting the care of the children to the capable hands of the old nurse, Tsunade, and a dear friend of the family, the writer Sir Jiraiya, the happy young couple set out to enjoy the theatre.

Tsunade was quick to take charge, the children lining up like ducklings as she served them a quick supper. Young Sasuke, she discovered, was sick with a fever and thus sent to bed early, while the other children were allowed to crowd round the hearth and listen to Sir Jiraiya's tales of adventure. He told them of grand palaces in far away deserts and long-lost treasures, guarded by fierce monsters. Indeed, Sir Jiraiya may have gone on forever, for he knew more than a thousand stories and had lived through even more, but the children were soon sleepy. Heads stuffed full of stories about strange lands, pirates and beautiful mermaids, the children were then herded off to bed.

And so it came to be that the children were all safely tucked in bed in the nursery, to sleep and dream of the adventures of children under the watchful eyes of the old nurse and storyteller. Tsunade and Sir Jiraiya were stalwart sorts and could stand the night watch, but, alas, they were not as young as they once were and, soon enough, their heads too drooped in sleep.

It was a scratching noise at the window that brought young Sakura out of her sleep and it did startle her so, for it reminded her of a dream she could not entirely recall. Cautiously, the girl peeked over the edge of her blankets at the darkened window. Lightning flashed and gave blossom to terror as she beheld a strange shape crouching beyond the glass. She ducked her head back below the safety of her blankets and sought to convince herself that she must be dreaming, for things most ordinary were oft transformed in dreams beyond the bounds of their true nature.

Again, there was a scratching noise at the window.

Surely there is nothing to fear, Sakura told herself. It is just the wind and nothing more.

There was a loud click and the sound of the storm outside grew louder as a gust of cold, wet air swept the room.

Sakura peeked over the edge of her blankets and stifled a gasp.

The nursery window had popped open and, hunched precariously on the windowsill, there was a strange, small dark figure. Lightning flashed and in an instant, she saw that the strange figure was a young boy with a distinctly wild look about him. He slunk into the room warily, followed by dancing motes of brightly colored light, and she thought he might be searching for something, for such was the manner of his movement. His dark form crept closer to the beds, peering at the slumbering faces, and then to the toys by the beds, examining and replacing them with a sort of clumsy curiosity. He drew nearer and nearer and, at last, poor Sakura could contain herself no longer.

"Boy, what are you doing?" she asked, sitting up in bed.

Startled, the boy leapt back, tripped over a discarded toy and flew up into the air, only to land upon the ceiling in the manner of a cat. Indeed, he looked like he might hiss as surely as any feline for such was the foul expression upon his face. The motes of light swirled around him in a frenzy as though they, too, were surprised.

Sakura reached over to the nightstand and turned the knob on the gas lamp, bringing a soft yellow light to the room. Now, she could see the boy clearly and was most perplexed by his appearance.

Clad entirely in a patchwork of summer leaves and vines, the bright-eyed young boy appeared a thing of one of Sir Jiraiya's tales, where strange and wondrous magic was afoot. The boy peered at her warily, tiny white milk teeth glinting at her from beneath his lips as he seemed to consider something. "I am searching for friends," he said, at long last, and the voice is full of promises of mischief. "There's an awfully grand adventure waiting in Neverland."

A thousand questions filled the young girl's head, but Sakura was raised a good girl and remembered her manners. "I am Sakura Haruno. What is your name?"

"I am Peter Pan," the boy replied, slipping and sliding through the air as lightly as a feather, until he came to light on the foot of her bed. The motes of light followed him closely, revealing their true nature - tiny people with iridescent wings and a spark of ethereal light about them, like the fairies from stories. They chattered and sparked around him like excited squirrels.

"There are many children here," the boy, Peter, observed, his eyes sliding to the nearest bed. "Are they all your brothers and sisters?"

Sakura giggled, politely covering her mouth. "Oh goodness, no, Mr. Peter! We are all orphans and this is an orphanage."

"Do you think they'd like to come away on an adventure?" he asked, slyly.

The covers on the neighboring bed flew back in a flash, revealing a blond boy with curious scars on his face that resembled the whiskers of an animal. His name was Naruto and he was something of a mischief-maker in his own right. How long he had been awake, Sakura did not know. "I wish to go!" Naruto said loudly, bouncing out of bed in his excitement. "I love adventures!"

It was Naruto's voice that roused the other children and, one by one, they clambered from their beds to greet the strange newcomer who promised adventures beyond compare. Even Sasuke, still flushed with a bit of fever, ambled out of bed for a better view.

"We must be quick, though, and leave straightaway," Peter said, his tone strangely serious.

"How shall we leave?" Naruto asked, curiously. "We shall not be able to sneak past old Tsunade. The hallway creaks too much and she will most certainly catch us."

Peter laughed and laughed, a merry, mischievous smile spreading across his young face. "We shall fly, of course! All that is needed is a pinch of fairy dust and happy thoughts and we shall be on our way at once!"

Sakura was most skeptical for she was a very clever little girl, but soon enough, young Peter demonstrated his method and she was forced to concede that he had, indeed, spoke the truth. With a bit of dust sprinkled over her head and her memory of her first fond friendship, she joined the other children hovering over their beds.

When at last all the children were airborne, Peter bade them follow him through the window. He knew the way to a place of many adventures and it was only a short way, just past the second star to the right and straight on until morning. Sakura hesitated at that, for she did not wish to cause the kindly Mr. and Mrs. Sarutobi any worry, but Peter assured her they would be back before too much time had passed and they were once more on their way.

The children saw a great many wondrous things on their journey to Peter's home. There were planets, stars, and a few of them supposed they'd seen one of Sir Jiraiya's fabled seafarers, slipping through the sea of stars in magic boats in search of legendary monsters. At last when their thoughts finally began to wander as the minds of children were wont to do, the fabled island where adventure awaited them peeked through the clouds and a brilliant sunrise bathed them all in warmth. The island seemed to whisper to them of all the adventures that could be had, treasures to be discovered and that they should stay as long as the liked, for time did not matter here.

Peter led them down to a beach on the far side of the island and they set off at once for an incredible adventure to find a long lost treasure of some kind that had long since been forgotten. Naruto and some of the others had become lost several times, but it was only pretend and it was terrible fun imagining what they adventures they could have had while lost. Why, Naruto even claimed he'd been kidnapped by a tribe of savage natives for a little while!

It was all great fun, yet soon Sakura began to notice the island had a strange effect upon them. Sasuke, who had been stricken with a fever, was now healthy and hale, easily keeping up with Peter. Naruto had always been a bit absent-minded and mischievous, however he was forgetting things the others told him only minutes ago and, likewise, most of the others forgot they had told him something. It was only when Sakura mentioned this concern to one of the others that they became aware of this pervasive effect. It was quite curious and Sakura could not help the tiny feeling of disquiet that settled in her chest. Tiny holes had crept into her precious memories as well and, every day that passed, she felt the tiny holes grow ever wider.

Peter said it was the way of things here and that she should not worry, for it was all just pretend.

But the idea would not leave poor Sakura alone, for her memories were her most precious possessions and all she had left of the time before she had come to the orphanage. She decided then and there that she would undertake an adventure of her own and restore her memories to rights.

Sakura wandered for many days in the forests of Neverland, until at last, she found a small pond in front of a cave decorated in terrible skulls and bones. In the pond, she saw a strange sight: herself, lying in the nursery bed at the orphanage, her face sunken and wan with evidence of illness. Enthralled, she watched as old Nurse Tsunade placed a cold cloth compress on the forehead of her sickly counterpart and shook her head sadly. Now, the whole extent of the nursery revealed itself in the water and unveiled all of her friends in similar, if not worse, condition.

"Could this be real?" she asked herself.

"It is the truth," Peter's voice replied. He drifted down to the ground gently, a strangely serious expression on his face. "You and your friends are dreaming, caught in Neverland, the place of in-betweens. With each memory that fades, you step closer to that cave and, soon, you will join me and all those who came before within."

Sakura paled, hesitantly approaching the cave, and held up a candle to the cave mouth. The bleached white bones of a child greeted her, perfect little white milk teeth glaring out at her, and beyond that lay more bones than she could count. In terror, she dropped the candle and fled from the discovery as fast as she was able. She and all her friends were in terrible danger!

Naruto believed her at once, for it sounded a great and terrible adventure indeed and he had always listened to her. His fond remembrance of old Professor Sarutobi had stuck fast and resisted the magic of the island more firmly than a mountain resists a storm. Many of the others took some convincing and more than a little reminder to recall their memories. Sasuke, in particular, had forgotten the most, for his memories from before the orphanage were most unpleasant.

Peter watched them all with detached curiosity, the fairies fluttering around him like will-o-the-wisps. "You should not worry so," he told them. "If you return home, you shall grow well again. But, you shall also grow up and become old, in the passing of time."

Sakura tartly told him that was preferable, as she and all the other orphans, save one, took to the air.

It was Sasuke who lingered on the beach.

"Sasuke, we must leave," Sakura said. "We cannot stay here."

The boy stubbornly shook his head. "I want to stay!"

"You mustn't!" she cried out.

"I like it here," Sasuke shouted back, stomping his foot and clenching his fists.

"Come on, Sasuke," Naruto wheedled. "Mr. Sarutobi will worry."

Sasuke turned and ran, only stopping once he'd reached the tree line. "Here, I don't have to remember!" he called out and then plunged into the forest.

Sakura screamed and the world faded into white.

Slowly, Sakura's eyes fluttered open and she beheld the relieved countenance of the old nurse Tsunade lingering over her.

"Awake at last," the old woman sighed, daubing a cool cloth on her forehead. "You gave us all quite a scare."

Sakura blinked absently, turning her head to look for the others. Naruto was sitting up in his bed, greedily sucking down a bowl of broth. His face, too, looked haggard and worn, but better than it had in the visions from the pond. All around them, she saw the other orphans waking up from their dream and shaking off the remnants of their illness.

Sasuke's bed was empty.

"Where is he?" Sakura asked.

Tsunade sighed, her face falling visibly, and placed her hand over the young girl's. "He is with his family now, the poor dear."

Sakura's eyes drifted to the window and her thoughts to the strange island of her dream. At last, she said, "I think he is happy, wherever he is."

AN: I'm in your fandom, ruining your childhood.

If you follow me on here and this seems familiar to you, you're correct: this is a repost of a oneshot that previously appeared in Variables, my collection of oneshots. Part of the reason I deleted "Variables" was so that this and the other crossovers in that collection of oneshots could go where they were supposed to. :V AH WELL.

So yeah, Sakura, Naruto and Sasuke as orphans in an orphanage run by the married Asuma Sarutobi and Kurenai. Whee.