What's going on?

There's darkness everywhere…why?

Where am I?

I can't see anything- it's too dark.

Why am I here?

This place feels so cold.

Wait- is that light?

There's something glowing over there.

Can I run to it?

No matter how much I run, I don't seem to move.

How far away is it?

Please, I don't want to be in the dark any more!

When did it get so hot in here?

The light- it's not a light.

Is that a fire?

It's in front of me.

When did it get here?

Flames rage in front of my face, but they don't scorch me. I feel the heat, see the dancing colors. They're all around me, suffocating me. I don't know why I'm here, why I'm seeing this.

There's suddenly a cry over the sounds of the flames. It sounds like someone's in pain, but I can't tell where it came from. I want to help the person if only I could find them.

I push through the fire with no pain, navigating my path by the scream.

Everything around me shifts. The flames are still moving, but now they're contained. Now where am I? It doesn't matter. I have to find them, whoever it is. They sound like they're in so much pain…

I come into contact with a door- so I'm in a house? The knob is glowing red and everything in me says that it will hurt, but when I grab it, I feel nothing. It opens to more fire. A wave of heat floods me and I lose my breath.

When I try to call out for whoever was crying, they didn't respond. Am I even getting closer? The more I move, the more distant the voice sounds.

A body drops at my feet. I don't know where it came from- don't think I want to know either- but it's there now. out of the flames comes another. I think they're alive and it becomes obvious as they rise to push me forward.

They tell me to hurry, save them before it is too late. I run faster. More bodies appear.

There is a single red door suddenly at the end of this seemingly endless hallway. I reach slowly- it is untouched by the surrounding chaos. The knob turns with a creak. The pleading voices are quiet now.

It feels like time has stopped.

Something pulls me forwards. Red catches my eye, a deep red extending from inside me, flowing like a ribbon. It's dragging my body somewhere. What's on the other side of this?

I'm scared to see. The person's still crying, the fire still burning. The ribbon brings me closer and closer until I am at the source: a little boy, lying next to a young man.

"Come with me!" I tell the child and reach out to him. His large dark eyes are familiar. They stare at me but look past me. His crying stops. The ribbon moves- tugs at his wrist and he stirs again. A dry gasp falls from his lips.

The man next to him whispers. His voice is silent, his face clear. Then everything disappears.

I am in darkness. My ribbon is dangling from a solitary branch.

As I approach, it sings softly:

Goodnight, goodnight

With visions alight

and stars in your eyes

I pray you sleep tight

Today or tomorrow

don't ever ask why

when you look to the sky

just remember:

At the end of the string

is a smile forever

and ever and ever it is yours

a love unimaginable

Don't forget

with all your might

at the end it waits

Goodnight, goodnight.

My hand grasps the fabric- I don't know why I wanted it, but I suddenly needed it, like it would save me from something.

A gust of air hits me. The dark whips around me furiously. I fall and no matter how much I try, I can't stand back up.

Padding attracts my attention. I'm not alone anymore. I see a pair of bare feet out of the black. Who...? I can't see their face.

They give me a hand and there is a small light around us.

When I look in their hand, I know.

Ah...you were pulling me.

Naruto jolted out of his bed. He was confused- with his dream and its jumbled messages. However, as he was met with Sasuke's peaceful face, his heart settled. It didn't matter now, he thought, it was just a dream. He'll tell Sasuke about it later.

The moon was still set in the navy blue sky and so the blonde rolled over, towards Sasuke and returned to his previous activity- sleeping.

"Hey, wake up," a smooth voice called. "It's time for breakfast."

Rather than stirring, Naruto sunk deeper into his pillow, grumbling.

He was shoved playfully. "Get up, you idiot. They're going to eat all the food." When he was answered with another incoherent sentence, Sasuke stood at the side of the bed. "Okay, sleep in; I'm going downstairs. And don't worry about your plate, I'll eat so it won't get cold."

At that, Naruto popped up. "Sasuke, don't eat it!"

Said boy laughed. "I knew that would get you. Hurry up and come down. " He left the room chuckling.

The blonde remained in the bed, letting himself get reacquainted with consciousness. His mind moved sluggishly and he wondered if he was out of the dream at all. There was a tugging in his chest.

After breakfast, the boys sat in the living room with Kiba and Shikamaru, who were engaged in an intense MK match. Shikamaru, the apparent champion of the house, was challenged by Kiba for the title, as he was numerous times a month. The score was Shikamaru 70, everyone else 0.

Sasuke, after losing to both Naruto and Kiba, was sitting next to Naruto, who lost against Kiba. They spoke over the painful cries of a fallen Scorpion.

"So, I had a weird dream last night," Naruto stated.

"Why should I care? " Sasuke scoffed. Naruto socked him on the arm and he flinched. "You know I was kidding; what happened?"

Naruto recollected as much detail as he could muster about the darkness, the fire, the people and that ribbon. "It was so random- I have no idea why."

Sasuke stared with a straight face. He had been listening closely the whole time, his face stressing with interest. He said nothing.

The blonde watched him curiously. "What's wrong?"

Shikamaru and Kiba finished their match then dispersed from the room unnoticed.

"That song…where'd you hear it?"

Shocked, Naruto shook his head. "I dunno. That was the first time. Do you know it?"

Sasuke swallowed a lump in his throat and nodded. He spoke slowly. "M-my brother would sing that to me when I was little, every night before I fell asleep." His hand covered his mouth as his eyes closed. "He made that so long ago…no one else knew about it- it was his gift to me." With a forlorn look, Sasuke sighed and was silent.

Itachi- that was his brother's name. There was very little know to Naruto about him, aside from his name and relation to Sasuke. It was obviously a sensitive subject for him, but…he felt this dream was sign. He had to know more. "What was Itachi like?"

Sasuke lifted a heavy head. "Itachi…he was always looking out for me, trying to cheer me up if I did something wrong." His voice quaked. "Since my dad- my real dad- expected so much of me since I was a child I had to learn things faster and do them better than everyone else. I had to be exceptional in everything and, for the most part, I was. It made my father happy and that made my mother happy and it seemed that was all that mattered to them."

"Well, what about you?"

"Don't get me wrong, they cared for me, in the technical sense. They loved me, clothed me, fed me, they just…we never had an emotional bond. That's why Itachi was always going out of his way for me. He was more than my brother- he was my best friend, my mother and my father." A tear traveled down his face and Sasuke fought to suppress a sob. "Itachi protected me from everything, even the fire, but I could never…"

He stopped speaking. His head hung low as tears flowed freely, staining the carpet with every salty drop.

Naruto felt his heart break as Sasuke tried his hardest not to cry, but that didn't dissipate the feeling that his dream meant something more than either of them could understand.

"You were just a little kid, Sasuke. There wasn't anything you could do." His words didn't help to comfort and Sasuke's sorrow only deepened.

Both were quiet. A wall clock ticked from the kitchen. Footsteps were heard throughout the house.

"My parents didn't like my singing," Sasuke stated. "So Itachi and I would sing that lullaby at night, when they were asleep." With a reminiscent expression, he spoke humorously, "he would tell me stories, about angels watching over me and protecting me and princes fighting for monsters for princesses. I remember one night, I asked him if I would ever get a princess…" He chuckled as his eyes sparkled.

Naruto smiled and laughed. "What did he say?"

"He said that I already have one, I just didn't know it yet." Sasuke was far away now, his mind replaying Itachi's stories.

The blonde could not interfere with this moment, especially since he was the one that started it. Instead, he watched Sasuke relive the moments, whatever they may be.

"Even if you don't see her, your angel will make sure you two will find each other," Itachi whispers to me.

It's so late and I know that he wants me to got to sleep, but his stories always make me curious! "What does my princess look like? How does the angel know where she is? Where did they come from? What are-"

My brother covers my mouth with his palm. I huff at him. "Sasuke, you ask so many questions- how am I suppose to answer them all?" He smiles at me- I love his smile. It's so bright that even in the dark I can see it. "One at a time."

After he moves his hand, I ask again, "what does she look like?"

"I don't know, Sasuke- she'll look however you want her to."

Even though I don't like his answer, I ask him another question. "When will I meet her?"

He laughs. "I don't know that one either."

I bite my lip. What can I ask that he would know? I sit quietly and wait for something to pop into my head. Itachi is still sitting. I don't want to keep him waiting for too long so I think of one before he gets tired. "What if the angel gets mine confused with someone else's?"

He doesn't answer fast and I think I should have asked a better question. But he asks me something. "Do you think you could find her out of everyone else in the world?"

I think about it for a long while. Then I smile at him. "Of course I could." "Why?" He asks with a serious face.

"Because I'd just know. And if she was made for me, she'd know too."

He laughs but I don't know why- I'm being serious. He stops when he sees my face. "That's right, Sasuke. And that's exactly why your angel couldn't get her confused either- he's just like you in everyway."

I stare at him. That doesn't make any sense- he can't be just like me or he'd be me! He'd be me. Me…

Sitting in the silence, Naruto looked at Sasuke with interest. He was always amazed by how little his face expressed his actual feelings because staring at him now, he knew there was something significant flashing before his eyes.

Just as the blonde edged closer to his love's face to place a platonic kiss on his perched mouth, Sasuke's head snapped towards him. The dark eyes scanned Naruto's suspiciously. "S-Sasuke! Wha- I mean, uh…um…" His words escaped him and so he went silent.

Sasuke chuckled at the blonde, closing the distance between them with his lips. "Idiot. If you want a kiss, just say so."

Satisfied with this, Naruto latched onto Sasuke and laid his head on the other's shoulder. He really wanted to ask what Sasuke was thinking about, what memory he had relived right in front of Naruto, but he figured that, in time, when Sasuke was ready, he would tell.

"Naruto." The blonde perked at the sound of his name. "When I was a kid, Itachi once told me about my guardian angel."

Naruto cocked his head. "What about them?"

Instead of answering, Sasuke asked, "you remember Sasuke?"

"Um, Sasuke…you are Sasuke."

"No, no," he shook his head. "Not me- the other one, the one you knew before me."

The boy's face visibly fell at the reminder of him. "How could I forget?"

"We were identical, right?"

"Yeah, I guess," Naruto said, deliberate. Where was this going?

"He was it." Naruto didn't need to speak to voice his confusion. "That other Sasuke, even Naruto- they both weren't just in our heads."

Naruto sat quiet for a moment as his brain processed this. Of course he never thought that they both were crazy, but the only way he could explain their parallels were if they were hallucinations, very vivid, accurate hallucinations. The thought of his Sasuke being something more- it sent him into awe. Was he right when he thought them fated to be together? Angels had strived for it, to bring solace to them in their sad lives.

A small smile spread on Naruto's face. "So you're saying they're angels?"

Sasuke shrugged. "Maybe." He was smiling too, enjoying the thought as well.

They would never really know what these angles are, but it can't hurt to imagine.

Senior Year: One year Later.

The year passed in a blur. The Ashwales, with the support of Naruto's family, enabled the two and grew to accept their relationship. Often the families had dinner together, getting along as though there had never been any tension between the groups.

As the year progressed, the boys matured. They no longer worried about being separated or cheating, knowing that they are completely dedicated to each other, in body and mind.

Going steady, they were the school's it couple and enjoying every minute of it. When they walked down the halls, arm in arm, everyone watched, talking to and about them like they were celebrities. Sure, it was hard to kiss farewell this way, but it only meant that they were acknowledged and mostly accepted. Their old friends stuck close to them when things looked like they may go awry, ultimately scaring off any problems that may follow.

Life went on with ease. There were no more problems, nothing else they could possibly want from anyone more than what they already have.

Until one day, a very special day for all the seniors: graduation.

The collective families rushed around the houses, getting the four boys ready for their big moment and, as parents often do, stressing over it more than the actual children. Bugging out over their hair, their clothes, their achievements and of course, the after party.

Sasuke and Naruto planned to share a small apartment after graduation, live on their own together while working. Naruto wanted to go to college, majoring in psychology- after living so long with a boy no one else could see, he knew that he would enjoy exploring the minds of others, just as he often did his own. Sasuke had reignited his old passion for writing and started a novel about an old soul's second chance at life, searching for the clues that lead to his mysterious past.

As the date approached, all the boys grew excited. The count down started and it occupied their every thought.

They were so occupied, in fact, that Sasuke didn't even realize that his parents sneaking around their own house, watching for him, whispering behind his back. All unnoticed by Sasuke, Julia and Richard were making their own post-graduation schemes…

"And we hope that each and everyone of you will remember not what we looked like, what stupid things we did or how popular we were, but by what we will do, what we have always strived to do- make you all proud. When we step foot outside of these grounds, we will truly be adults. When we step foot outside these grounds, we will leave imprints in the lives of those who we come into contact with.

"To my fellow graduates…good luck to you, wherever you go."

The students marched off the stage as practiced, diplomas in hand and tears in their eyes. When it came time to leave the large auditorium, they quickly latched on to friends and proceeded to chatter reminiscently.

Sasuke and Naruto found each other immediately, followed by Shikamaru and Kiba then various friends. The posse rode the crowd through the door and right into ushering families.

Julia and the Uzumakis stood off to the side, waving frantically towards their sons.

Each boy was embraced as their parents cried the usual nonsense attributed to premature "empty nest" syndrome.

When the initial shock wore off, Julia pulled Sasuke aside eagerly. She refused to answer any of his questions as to where or why and his confusion doubled when Richard, who had not been with the rest of the adults, was stepping out of a black 2008 Camry. It wasn't either of their cars.

It wasn't either of theirs…so…so it was-

"Mine?" He said incredulously.

Richard walked over to his dumbfounded son. "Yep, all yours. Your mother and I have been saving up for it. But don't just stand here, take a look inside it."

Tilting his head slightly, Sasuke's eyes scanned the windows- with the sun having already set, it was hard to tell the contents it held. He moved closer to it, eyeing it suspiciously. Naruto ran up behind the Ashwales and asked what was going on, who's car it was, what was Sasuke doing. They shushed him, told him to be patient.

The boy was now in front of the car, peering in through driver side glass. A dim light flicked on in a moment and illuminated the surprise.

All the breath was taken out of his lungs, all the blood in his body turned cold and his head was ten pounds lighter.

Sitting starch in the passenger side of his new car, staring right back into identical eyes, wearing a small familiar smirk was the one link to his past. Itachi Uchiha.

Sasuke nearly collapsed from shock, placing his hand on the hood to steady himself. In a minute Itachi was standing next to him, embracing him, cooing him. Sasuke didn't know what to do- he couldn't find the air to breath and the words to speak. All he could do was cry into the strong chest that had so long ago held him tenderly just like this, whispering kind words. He looked up at Itachi with teary eyes; he wanted to see the face that vanished from his life ten years ago.

From his current height, his older brother didn't appear to be as tall as he had remembered. The dark eyes that watched over him lovingly had the same bags under them. Past the eyes, there were few set wrinkles lining his warm smile that only further characterized Itachi. Small patches of skin on either side of his face and down his neck, leading onto his shoulders were discolored from the flames he fought off to protect Sasuke. His dark hair was still long, trailing behind his neck in a pony tail.

The familiarity of this man was overwhelming him once more and he was overcome with joy. He blubbered to his lost brother, grabbed hold of him so tightly that he could never leave him again. And Itachi let him, knowing well that he would not ever want to leave his brother again either.

Itachi accounted the story behind his mysterious disappearance over dinner that night.

When he awoke in the hospital, he was delusional, having passed out amidst the fire. Itachi had no idea where his family was, especially Sasuke. His last moments of consciousness were of shielding the boy from harsh flames; waking up in an alien location without knowing if he had truly saved his brother made him almost mad. The nurses refused any questions and instead dressed his wounds as though he were hardly a person.

In the middle of the night, Itachi ran far away from that place, trying to out run the memories of the fire.

The confused teen lived in abandoned buildings until he was healed, stealing food where he could and taking hand-outs from kind spirits. Not long after, Itachi was introduced to photography by a young tender-hearted artist that had taken him in. He captured the beauty around him with an old camera.

It only a hobby at first, but as he explored the world more and more, his hobby grew into a passion.

Itachi was recommended to a small magazine and his first photo was published. He filled the holes in his heart with the new beauties of life. His career captivated him, but it could not erase the pains of his past.

He lived for nine years as a freelance photographer, traveling where he wished, having no ties to society except for his work, which was on displayed in shops and on magazines.

Then arrived a strange letter in his mail box. It was from a couple, one whom he obviously did not know, that live in a small town he had never heard of. Inside their letter, they claimed to know of Sasuke's whereabouts. In fact, they claim to have adopted him, taken Sasuke in when he was only seven after the fire. They had seen the surname Uchiha by chance on a magazine cover and sought to reach Itachi ever since.

They sent him letters and letters about Sasuke, giving him pictures of his lost brother upon request. The joy of discovering his brother was enough to bring the man to tears. He was so excited to see Sasuke- he wanted to talk with him, hear his voice, feel his touch. He wondered if he had changed a lot- if he still wrote those silly stories or sung the wrong words to his favorite songs.

Itachi was ready to drop everything and rush to Sasuke and his new family, but the year was almost over and, even though it would kill him, he thought that it would be selfish to force himself into Sasuke's new life. The boy already had enough problems, as he'd been told- trouble in schools, therapy, coming out - he didn't want to be another one on the list.

That is why he waited until Sasuke's graduation to show. He saw his beloved brother at his finest in his traditional white graduation gown and cap, diploma in hand.

It was time for them to make new memories together.

Itachi planned to take his brother in whenever he was ready to leave for college; he lived in a penthouse suit with more than enough room to accommodate another person. It was his way of apologizing for disappearing without a word, for so easily believing the death of his dear brother. Now if only Sasuke would accept…

A month had passed since Itachi and Sasuke were reunited.

The eldest of the two was returning from a weekend excursion and was just placing his bags down in the doorway of his suit when something unexpected happened.

As soon as he set the bag on the floor, he was pulled inside quickly, right into an embrace.

"Welcome back, Itachi." A smooth voice greeted.

Itachi, caught off guard, stood stupefied for a moment, then wrapped his arms around the body. He had almost forgotten that he was no longer all alone: in the past ten years, he had no one to greet, no one to look forward coming back to. But that all changed when his beautiful brother came back to him.

"Sasuke," he said contently. "How was your-"

The man's low voice was cut off by an energetic cry: "ITACHI!"

Another body was thrust into the hug. A mixture of black and blonde hair were tickling Itachi's nose. He laughed at the excitable blonde. "Naruto." Itachi squeezed both teens close for a moment then released them.

Naruto and Sasuke followed after the man like ducklings. "How was your trip thing, Itachi? Did you bring us a souvenir? Can we go with you next time? Did you take any pictures?"

Itachi laughed at their liveliness. He sat on the sofa along with the two boys. "Good, of course, maybe and yes. Now, tell me one thing- were you both okay while I was gone?"

"Yup," Naruto chirped. "How could we not be- you have everything here!"

Sasuke nodded. "It was hard to find everything still, but we managed." He hugged his brother again. "I missed you, Itachi."

"I was only gone for three days, Sasuke, and you had Naruto here with you." His large hand smoothed out the boy's hair. He kissed Sasuke's forehead. "If you want, next time I'll take both of you with me."

"Okay," Sasuke mumbled like a child.

Naruto smiled at the two; he and his brothers were never really this attached and he couldn't help but feel slightly jealous. His smile fell.

As if on cue, Itachi turned to the blonde. He noticed Naruto's atmosphere changing rapidly. "Sasuke, would you please bring me some water? I haven't had anything to drink all day."

The youngest Uchiha complied immediately, walking down the hall to the kitchen, leaving both Itachi and Naruto alone.

"Naruto, are you comfortable living here?"

" 'Course I am- why wouldn't I be?" He looked away from Itachi's perceptive eyes.

"I know how close you and Sasuke are- I don't want you to feel threatened by my presence."

Naruto shook his head. "No, that-that's not it…I'm just…a little jealous of Sasuke, I guess." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I've never had a brother like you."

Smiling his sweet smile, Itachi put both hands on either of Naruto's shoulders. "Please, Naruto, I think of you as another brother to love and I would like for you to think of me in the same way. We are family now. All of us."

The three lived together, the brother and the lovers, in their new home, going on with their lives as though it were the way it was meant to be from the beginning.

"Good work, boys. I knew you could do it."

Sasuke and Naruto jumped from their vantage point of the human world. A hand was suddenly on their shoulders. Upon seeing the face they belonged to, both simultaneously sighed in relief.

"Itachi! We didn't expect to see you here so soon," Naruto said, placing his hand on the man's.

"How did you find us?" Sasuke asked his brother with a wide smile. "I thought for sure you'd be another two or three years."

Holding up his pinky finger, Itachi chuckled. "Everywhere I went, this little guy appeared, tugging me this way and that until I showed up here." The red ribbon flowed strong between the three.

Naruto sighed. "Well, since they're all together, I guess it's time we go?"

"Yes, I believe so," Itachi concurred. He wrapped his arms around their shoulders as they began walking in the opposite direction.

Sasuke dared one last look back at the world he had spent so many years in, at the people he had grown to love. "I'll miss them," he told his companions sadly.

Naruto gazed back as well. "Me too."

Itachi shook his head. "But now's not the time for remorse." A flash of white caught their eyes. "Now, we have to go home."

So that's it- the conclusion to Imaginary Friends. I hope it was satisfying for you.

However, before I go, there are some things I felt I should clear up:

1)Other Sasuke and Naruto are supernatural beings, so could pass as angels.

2)Itachi is not magical- he did not summon the Others. It was their divine duty.

3)The red ribbon is meant to symbolize the string of fate, which drew them together.

4)The Others return to their "home"(a state of conscientiousness) in the end because their job is done for now.

And here is the song I leave you all with, the final song: Chaosmyth by One OK Rock

watch?v=C-xF2MAFw5s&feature=autoplay&list=PLnIxv_21lGTTD547z1XADCdC2PNsA_bxP&playnext=1

Goodbye, Beauties.