A/N: I originally planned for this piece to be a one-shot but I thought it might be better to have a series/collection of drabbles featuring Hyuuga Hinata after claiming her character from the 50_Shinobi writing community in Livejournal. Broken Pieces will be my ice-breaker whenever I get tired of writing the next chapter of Chiaroscuro. I hope you like my little offering.

Broken Pieces
Standard Disclaimers Apply

Title: Battle Scars
Theme: Inner Demon
Pairing: Neji/Hinata

White sheets of snow carpeted his surroundings. The wind stung his cheeks red, seared his lungs tighter, and froze his fingers into numbness. His breaths were raspy and uneven; the dooming coldness paralyzing him. The cuts on his chest were new, and raw; his blood tainting the purity of snow.

He had no strength left to fight him - his destiny was being written, the final chapter of his life foretold.

But he can never lose, not to anyone, especially not to him.

Itachi slowly approached his lifeless figure. The strong gust swayed his heavy cloak and the ominous chinks of his chains echoed against the deafening silence.

No one was strong enough for him. No one- not even a Hyuuga.

He wouldn't let him die easily. Itachi would let him suffer with his eyes; a torture the Hyuuga wouldn't forget.

His Sharingan eyes pierced his body with a thousand swords - and the horrifying visions never left Neji's eyes.

It was a miracle that he had survived. The moment he gained consciousness, Neji promised himself he wouldn't tell anyone, neither his mother nor his teammates, the details of what had been done to him.

He never did -not one soul- until he held Hinata.

He told her everything.

Neji could picture everything as if it was right in front of him; every sheet of ice, the pine needles, and the look on Itachi's eyes when he activated the Mangekyou.

Tears traced a line down to his ears. His eyes were misty, reflecting horror and pain. He was lying in bed; sweating and trembling.

"Neji," Hinata whispered, "You were crying in your sleep."

He could hear the anguish in her voice and behind it, the deepest love he had ever known. Neji was afraid, so terrified, that he had lost the power to give her anything.

"I dreamed of that night-," he began, and then stopped.

Hinata pressed her cheeks against his chest. Her warmth hadn't calmed his hammering heartbeat, "What happened?"

The scars no longer hurt as they once had, but they felt taut and hard. Neji hadn't noticed her hand as she reached up to touch his face. Their room was dark and Neji couldn't see anything, except in his dreams.

A/N: So there's the first story. I hope you enjoyed it. I guess it depends on if people are interested if I continue or not (also depends on if I have some good ideas for some more one-shots). I'm not sure what pairing to do next, but I have a few ideas. I'm willing to take votes for what Hinata pairing you would like to see next. I don't write yuri but I want to do some Hinata friendship fics as well.

You know the drill guys, so don't forget to review! Thank you

Honeyee