HELLION: Dragged Into The Fire

A Halloween special to chill your bones!

Disclaimer: I do not own or profit from the Naruto franchise or its characters.

Aerophobia: Fear of Airborne Noxious Substances

Sciaphobia: Fear of Shadows

Philophobia: Fear of Love, Falling or Being In

Isolophobia: Fear of Being Alone or Solitude

Who do you think has which phobias?

Finally, a sense of calm. Konoha villagers were relieved to have a bit of relaxation as the Autumn air rolled in. It had been several weeks since the signing of the treaties between the counties, and peace had since proven to reign. No one was certain peace could have been achieved, but all fears were calmed once the final leader of the last remaining hostile territory had been overthrown, the country's own people long since tired of the waging of wars. Everyone had fought tooth and nail for peace and tranquility, the kind of world they hoped to settle in and raise their families. The Rookie 9 were some of the strongest believers in working towards a nation of peace and love, the kind of world they could be proud of and would feel safe gifting to their children and children's children.

Still, for Sakura, the calming breeze held a slight chill. She waved it off as just a distant repercussion of living in Fire Country - you never bother getting used to the cold, because the heat comes back in full force quickly. But it was. . .an unsettling feeling. Like the air carried a disease. Sakura didn't feel safe breathing it in. She was afraid of being poisoned by what the wind would bring to her front door.

Sakura did not leave her apartment that day. She was visibly unsettled since the last battle, since Pein had nearly destroyed everything and everyone whom she loved dearly. She cannot believe how they rose again, safe and revived to the degree of stability. It was like a gift from Heaven. But she had maintained her distance - emotionally, that is. She was grateful that Naruto had won the great battle, and had ultimately won over the heart of the village. Naruto was turning into a great, wodnerful man. Sakura was so proud of her teammate and close friend. Hinata was very lucky to have finally won his heart.

Sakura's heart, however, was much heavier. She had become accustomed to the dark over the past few years, after fully comprehending that Sasuke would never come back. It took her quite a while to surmise he was gone for good. He suffered so much for the sake of power. He became a monster, just to satisfy foolish desires. Power. Revenge. A grudge. He didn't understand himself, why he survived. Why Itachi didn't slaughter him where he stood. Why Itachi wanted Sasuke to survive to hate him and grieve alone.

Many times, Sakura had tried putting herself in the same situation. She just couldn't feel the grief or hatred - she didn't think she was capable of such horrible feelings. Such horrible acts, crimes of humanity.

That was it. Sasuke had lost all humanity. He truly was a monster. Did she still love him?

Sure, she loves Sasuke. The cute little boy from their childhood. He was her first love. It was quite unrequited, but she didn't mind. It occupied her time. She was painfully shy, and had little contact with other children. Ino came into her life, but soon became competition for Sasuke's affections. Then it was isolation all over again. Naruto became Sakura's closest ally. He had a small crush on her, but she knew it was never anything serious. They were destined to be friends and nothing more. He was a good friend to have, but now his time was precious. He and Hinata were married last Winter, and Hinata is due to give birth in the Spring. Naruto had found his happy life. Sakura could never again be close to Naruto.

Sakura's clock struck 8:00 p.m. She became hungry, which was a problem when she knew she had nothing in her pantry. She did not have the motivation to shop for sustenance. She had no appetite, and nothing looked appetizing. She loathed shopping for groceries. Wonderful taste was a pleasure once forgotten, along with all the rest. Nothing remained; she was a hollow shell of the bubbly and friendly young girl she used to be. She wondered if becoming an adult was always so difficult and melancholy. It couldn't be. It must just be her. How did Sakura become the unfortunate one?

Sakura resigned herself to braving the chilly night air and made the short trek to the market. A soup sounded weak enough for her to stomach. So soup, it was. But she needed. . .everything. Sakura trudged down the sidewalk, shuffling the second she breached the safe confines of her doorway. Everything sounded menacing. No sound was friendly. No smell was pleasant. No shadow was safe. Someone was following her, watching her every move.

She shuffled quicker, picking up her pace to avoid the onslaught of impending danger. The chakra signature was strictly foreboding. Nothing good could come from such a repulsive chakra signature.

Suddenly, Sakura choked. She knew it. She would not listen to her instincts; she had to cut them off from her conscious. Because she was stupid. She was not quick enough to understand. She. . .didn't want to believe it. It was a familiar signature, but felt almost sinister in presence. This wasn't an ordinary human. It wasn't an ordinary shinobi. It was something evil.

It was him.

What should she do? What could she do? All she could do was to carry on like nothing happened; like she didn't detect his presence at all. She is simply walking to the market for some soup to take of some of the chilly night air. Yes, that's it. Just calm down.

The chakra signature faded, and Sakura calmed down. She assumed he had left, or maybe that she had imagined the whole ordeal. It was that time of year, the time of year where she was always made a bit jumpy. It was close to Halloween.

To make her trip short, Sakura knew she had to cut through a little park. It was close to a few residences and was pretty well-lit, so it seemed safe enough. After all, she may be out of practice, but her fists could move mountains just as easily as they could mend torn flesh. And she thought she could use a drink or two at a local bar before her walk back home. And a little liquor would make grocery shopping a bit more enjoyable.

She entered the gates of the park, and stopped. It must have been her mind playing tricks on her. The lights seemed much more dim. The path looked like it could take her an hour to reach the other side. And the homes that seemed much closer during the daytime were not even visible. There was no one around. But it wasn't anything Sakura wasn't used to, so she continued on. After all, there was no one close to her in her own reality. The lights were always dim, and shadows surrounded her to distort her vision and block her path to happiness. Her path had a great distance between her feet and the finish line. Her reality was her own prison.

Sakura put one foot in front of her as she ventured further down the concrete path. She felt the twigs snap below her feet. It was a horrible crunching sound that made her cringe with every step.

The shadows kept moving. They looked like they were jumping around, from tree to tree.

She felt it again - the sinister presence.

"Hello?" Sakura stood where she was, prepared to reach into her kunai pouch in an instant.

"Hello, yourself." It was more of a breathy echo than a voice. The wind.

"Who's there?" Her eyes darted around, from tree limb to tree limb, She was certain she could have an attack from above.

But she was wrong. How did she know? Because the shallow, cold breaths on her neck and shoulder were a finite indicator of her miscalculations.

"Me."

Sakura shuddered and bolted. She didn't want to stay on the path, so she ran into the woods. The woods, she knew, were a little thick. She had made a mistake. She couldn't find her way out, unless she ran back the way she came. And she didn't want to run into whoever - or whatever - that thing was.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Not quick enough, little pink lamb." Sakura had no time to react before she was dealt a blow onto her lower back. It knocked her off her feet, and she flew into a pile of brush and leaves approximately eight to ten feet in front of her. She landed on her knees, stomach and face. She spat out dirt, leaves and blood, coughing and groaning in pain.

"What. . .who. . .?" Sakura attempted to turn over to sat least face her attacker, not really wanting to know what she would be looking at. But she wanted the opportunity to plead for her life.

Her earlier suspicions were confirmed. It was something truly sinister, and it was him. He somehow had entered the walls of Konoha undetected, and came back to attack her. He may be intending to kill her tonight.

"Sa-sasuke?" Sakura blinked her sore eyes. She was attempting to remove painful dirt and to try to remove the image of the man standing before her. This was a powerful, evil creature of the night. He bore the wings of a dark beast, longer hair, a new vision of his terrifying glowing red eyes, and even more pale skin. He even had an electrifying evil current flowing through him. He was a monster.

"Sasuke. . .kun?" He mocked her, his hate-filled laugh rolling from his broad, chiseled chest.

"N-no. It can't be. You must be dead!" Sakura tried to pick herself up and scooted back farther, her back reaching the trunk of a tree. She felt behind her for the bark. Sasuke must not have liked her initial shock, because within a split second, he used his wings to fly into the air and leaped over her. She didn't know where he went. She knew he may have jumped into the tree she was sitting under, so she craned her neck far back against the tree trunk to look up.

His horrifying face was looking down onto her, within inches from her own face. He snarled. Sakura was not pushed up against a tree trunk - it was a tree stump, and he was perched on it like a gargoyle.

"Ahhhhh!" All Sakura could do at that point was to scream in sheer terror. She was facing pure evil, and knew she would die in any second. His hand , more like a claw, covered her mouth.

"Do not make such annoying noises. No one will come. But I do not enjoy it at all, so please stop."

Sakura stopped screaming, puzzled. He did not kill her instantly. What? Did he want something from her? He uncovered her mouth.

"Wh. . .what? What do you want from me?" Sakura couldn't move, and she couldn't even look away from his terrifying face anymore. His stern look commanded obedience and attention.

He grunted. "Answers. I am powerful. I have avenged my family, though it was all a lie. Tonight, I have done something terrible. Something the village will never forgive me for. But it seems it was one more vicious cycle, because I have received fresh information that, once again, the ones I followed have betrayed me." Frown lines on his forehead and mouth wrinkled, showing his displeasure. Sakura had no clue what he was talking about, but the subject matter frightened her even more. She would have almost rather have been killed already than to learn he may have killed one of the few bright lights of her life. What if he had decided to kill Naruto, Kakashi-sensei, then her, to finally sever his human ties?

"But you. . .you and Naruto, you have not betrayed me. You care for me. You would like for me to settle here once again, correct?"

Sakura didn't know how to speak to him, or to answer. So she plainly and slowly nodded her head.

He grunted again. He looked away from her, as if contemplating her nod. Then he turned to her again.

"You. . .you care for me, correct? Do you still care for me? You would stay with me, even if I look like this? Even if I am capable of horrible things with terrifying powers?"

Sakura looked at him, puzzled but frightened of saying the wrong thing. She had seen him angered before, in a more human form. She didn't want to make this abomination of a human angry.

"Yes." Her throat barely squeaked out the response. To her surprise, it felt quite a bit more sincere than she previously thought. Here he was, in a different form. But he could possibly revert back and care for her, too. What if he didn't? Would he kill her, anyway? This beast was good for nothing but killing and hatred.

Sasuke must have believed her, and he was once again contemplating his next move. Sakura swallowed her breath as his frightening, yet still beautiful, face inched closer to hers with unbelievably smooth movement.

"Are you afraid of me?"

Sakura nodded. "But if you're here to kill me, go ahead."

Sasuke's head didn't move again. It didn't move back, but he stopped moving forward. He gave her a perplexed look, his eyebrows furrowed.

"Kill you? Do you know how long I've wanted to? I. . .tried, many times. More than you know. But I never could. I couldn't bring myself to sever my deep emotional ties."

Sasuke's clawed fingers reached down to toy with her fingers. He looped his fingers to intertwine with hers. The movement and feeling of affection shocked Sakura.

"Then. . .why are you here? You said-"

"Shh. I said I did something terrible in the village. Something they will not forgive me for. But you will. Naruto may not, now, but you will. You must do something for me."

"You. . need my help with something?"

He chuckled darkly. "Yes. It's something I cannot do alone. I could choose anyone randomly, but my heart, when it was still whole and beating, chose you long ago for the role. You would be the perfect nurturing mother."

"What? Mother?" Could he mean. . .no. There's no way.

"I killed the council members who sent my brother on the mission of eliminating my clan. They signed my death warrant, along with the others. But my brother could not kill me. He could not sever the last emotional tie to someone he loved, much like I am now."

Sakura blushed, even through the cold night air and the terror in her bones from hearing who he had slaughtered just this very night.

"Itachi, as ANBU and a puppet of Danzo, was ordered to kill his own clan, his own mother and father. How depraved could they get? His own little brother, too. They blamed my family for so much, and feared us. Well, tonight I assured their fears. They knew they had signed their own death warrants. They told me so, right before I sliced into them. They didn't even whimper."

Sakura inched backwards, no longer wanting to be close to him. She pulled her hand from his. It left a strange feeling, so she looked down. In the gleam of the moonlight, she saw the horrifying streaks of blood his clawed hand had left on her porcelain skin. She held back another shriek, not wanting to anger him.

"I sliced into them with my bare hands, and ripped out their hearts. I had asked them if they even had hearts, but they could not answer me. So I answered for them. I was gracious enough to show them to them before they were spent. Now they know. They had no true excuse for their decision to slaughter my clan, and they paid for it. That was their job, you know. To pass judgement on others, and to assist the Hokage with these decisions. To be fair. I thought this was very just." He was rationalizing every kill.

"Sasuke. . .you. . .murdered them. . .how. . .could you just kill?"

He grinned. "The same way you do. I've seen you kill before. You are a shinobi. We learned to disconnect ourselves from our victims and death by our own hands long ago, as Genin. Don't you see? They made me this way. I just so happened to be better at it than most."

"Sasuke. . .you've gone crazy. . .I-"

She felt his cold claws wrap around her throat. She felt the air leaving her lungs, not to return. She thought this was it. She tried to sob, to cry out for forgiveness, but she couldn't muster the ability to speak. But in a few more seconds, he released her.

"Watch your tongue. It slipped." His glowing red eyes burned a little darker now.

"I. . .apologize. . ." Sakura rasped in-between gulps of sweet, poisonous air.

"To continue, before you foolishly interrupted. . .it seemed my mentor just so happened to be my dear brother's accomplice in the Uchiha clan slayings. He survived. Everything. He sat in his own hate, stewing like a boiled carcass for a stew full of audacity. He lied to us all. He is true evil. And still, he walks. I must kill him. One more, and it will all be over."

"Wh-what?" It was like he was rambling incoherently at this point. He was unpredictable.

"Madara Uchiha."

Sakura's breath hitched in her sore, bruised throat. How could that be? Was he making this up? Was he very, very crazed?

"I must battle with him. Soon. But I may not return alive. I need to revive the clan, my one last goal. I need a mate. I want you." He said it so plainly that Sakura knew it wasn't a proposition, like he verbalized. He was going to take her, whether or not she wanted him to. She had no real choice in the matter.

"Sasuke. . .I. . .don't know if I'm ready for this. That is a big decision. It isn't romantic, and it isn't within a relationship, much less a marriage. How could the baby be an Uchiha if it's legally a Haruno without wedlock?"

"Foolish ramblings of a dim-witted young girl. I see you haven't changed much." No, he wasn't doing himself any favors. He wasn't winning her over with his cunning linguistic skills. But then again, he was going to have her, one way or another. That much Sakura knew. So it was this and hope not to get pregnant, or try her best to find a way to die - quickly. She liked her odds more than death at this juncture. She gulped nothing but air, since her mouth was too dry.

"Alright. I suppose if time is of the essence for you, and I'd be here anytime you could return. . ." Sakura trailed off. She wasn't ready to just say 'yes,' but she wasn't really brave enough to say anything else. She wasn't willing to say 'no.' Not to the devil in the flesh.

"I realize you may not understand the full terms of this, so I will remind you that I aim to rebuild my clan. Our child would be an Uchiha, no matter any social barriers. If I return, there would be more. If I don't return, you must live on in the Uchiha name and protect the child. He must survive."

Sakura nodded, hoping he would hurry so she could forget about this. He didn't keep her waiting long.

Sasuke crawled off the tree stump on his hands and knees, like a rabid animal. His knees planted firmly in the leaves and brush beside her hips, Sasuke leaned in and sniffed her neck like he was searching for her scent or a mark. Sakura once again felt the terror rise in her as she felt his cold breath on her neck again. She held back sobs. It felt like she was waiting to be eaten by a wild animal.

He sniffed, licking a little. She felt his claws slither up her back, sending shivers of epic proportions to her nerves. They reached her left shoulder, where they grasped it and nudged her backwards to the ground.

Now Sakura could peer up at his form. He was only wearing black pants with a black, tattered sash. His bare chest was chiseled. He was very well-developed. His face didn't hold much of his boyish good looks anymore. It was now the bone structure of an impressive, stunning man. . .underneath a frightening mask. But she saw an Uchiha underneath. The skin was pale and smooth, though a little torn and scarred. But ti was nothing she couldn't repair.

His fingers drifted to her open jacket. His fingers slipped underneath the material to cup one of her breasts. She could feel his sharp claws through her shirt and bindings. Then she felt the cold air. His sharp claws had ripped through the thin cloth. He released her breast to tug on the jacket. She lifted her body a little bit, just her torso, and tugged her own jacket off. He seemed pleased by her willingness, because she heard him grunt. His fingers returned quickly to her shirt, where he ripped the cloth open and pulled as much as he could right off of her. Some of the material was left stuck under her back, but she didn't mind the extra cushioning underneath her. The ground was cold and uncomfortable.

Sasuke's claws cupped her left breast again, a sliver of flesh already exposed to him. With only one claw, he sliced her bindings open and ripped the offending material away from her. So now, not only was Sakura horrified by her current predicament, she was now exposed and mortified. But she didn't even have time to move to cover herself. Sasuke's mouth quickly descended on her chest and enveloped her left breast. He began to gently suck, letting his cold tongue lap lazily around the nipple. Sakura couldn't understand why everything about him was so cold, like he was some sort of cold-blooded creature. As if Sasuke was not even the least bit human anymore.

But he chose her; he came back for her. He wanted her to be the catalyst of his clan's regeneration. He didn't say he loved her, but she felt. . .something. He did say his heart chose her a long time ago. That meant he had feelings for her, and that's why he could never kill her. Even when his dementia drove him to it, he still held back. He was too strong - if he had wanted to kill her, even when they were teenagers. . .he would have succeeded long ago. The more and more she stared at him, the more she noticed he didn't look so much like a monster if he didn't bare his teeth and if his eyes weren't glowing. She peered down at him. He looked like a pleased boy while sucking on her nipple. His mouth was closed around her breast, gently sucking. His eyes were gently shut, and his eyebrows were furrowed in concentration. If his skin was more flesh-colored, he'd look a lot like her old Sasuke.

Sakura resigned herself to her current situation. She laid back, squeezing her eyes shut and feeling sorry for herself, blaming herself and him. This was all his fault, she knew. This could possibly be her only chance of real pleasure and as close to love, the real thing, as she could get, though. Should she just take advantage of this moment and imagine it was another one of her fantasies? She had tried to have those types of feelings for other men in the village and other villages, but they were all failures. Sasuke was the only one she thought she could ever truly love.

"Sasuke. . .I loved you. . when you left. . .I couldn't love again."

He pulled back and looked at her. He couldn't understand. Was she trying to make him feel guilty? Or was she confessing her love for him all over again? Either way, he couldn't concentrate on her ramblings right now. All he needed to do at this moment was to successfully mate with her. Perhaps one day, if he could return, he would try to understand the feelings she had for him and would try his best to reciprocate. But right now, this was all he could do. He had goals to achieve. And she could assist him in these goals and win the prize of becoming his lifelong mate. And an Uchiha.

"You need to conserve your energy into taking care of the child. You've waited for me. Now wait to do the same for the child."

Sakura assumed he was referencing her virginity, and he assumed right. She couldn't love anyone else since him, and that was the truth. She couldn't let anyone else get that close to her. That was why she had resigned herself to try to enjoy this. After all, this may be the only time she'd be allowed to feel this good. And she wanted to try to feel pleasure. After all the enjoyment she had been denied, she thought she at least deserved this much. She reached up with her left hand to touch his raven locks, twisting her fingers through and sensually rubbing his scalp. He growled, and she quickly retracted her hand, startled. He looked up at her with lust-glazed red eyes.

"You may touch me." He returned to his current task. But he took advantage of the pause to switch to her right breast. Sakura looked on as his lips encircled her other nipple, closing his eyes again and enjoying as much as he could. She blushed and turned away. She allowed her hand to raise up again to touch his hair. This time, though, her touches were more feather-light. Even though he growled again, this time much lower and lighter, she took that to mean he was enjoying it. She allowed her fingers to delve deeper and massage his head. He did enjoy it. Her other hand came up to his shoulder, to keep him there and help connect them more. He approved.

Sasuke shifted to become closer, too. When he moved his legs to straddle her left leg, Sakura felt his genitals rub against her thigh. She gasped, and he groaned at the friction. Sakura popped back into reality and let it sink in exactly what she was doing, and where. She quickly dismissed it, though, because she knew Sasuke could sense people from great distances, and any human nearing their location would be detected quickly and dispatched before she knew what happened. Right now, she couldn't care. She couldn't do anything to stop him, anyway..

Sasuke fretted about that previous look of hesitancy on her face. He sped up his actions, wanting to make her more excited to keep her concentrated in the moment. He reached down to unclasp and unzip her pants. It didn't take much effort, because the pants were already pretty loose. Sakura had lost weight and body mass from lack of exercise and starvation from her depression. He felt bones he knew he shouldn't. He looked up at her again.

"You're too thin. You need to eat. You must remain strong. " He was a bit worried about her. What if she wasn't strong enough to carry his child? This would be a disaster. He made a note to make sure she was going to take care of herself. He needed to return, so he could take care of her.

"I will."

Sasuke was pleased enough with her answer. He pulled her pants off of her and left them close to her feet, discarding her underwear with them. Sakura hitched her breath at her sudden complete exposure. But she did notice the cold air was not bothering her as much now, due to the heat on her skin beginning to rise.

Sasuke removed the articles of clothing we wore and tossed them aside. They were both exposed, Sasuke being the least concerned. He made to cover her body as much as possible to ensure her warmth.

"Bite my neck." He ordered her.

She looked up at him, puzzled. He sighed, then dipped his clawed hand under the base of her skull and lifted her face up to his neck, just blow his left ear.

"Bite." He ordered her again, this time, a little more frustrated. She took a sliver of his flesh into her mouth, to please him. It didn't feel like normal human flesh. It was cold, which she predicted; but it wasn't as thin or spongy as normal skin. It was. . .strange.

Instantly, Sasuke was inside her. He broke her barrier with one swift movement. He held his position for a moment to gauge her reaction. Sakura stifled a scream when he entered her and bit down harder on his neck, gasping for air. She really was a virgin. Now he was certain. It didn't please him to have to hurt her, but he was pleased she was pure. The mother of his children was his and only his.

Within a few moments, Sakura's grip on his neck loosened. She signaled that he could move with a curt nod of her head when she leaned back, and he adjusted his position and pulled out slowly. He saw her face, and was not happy that she didn't enjoy it. He thrust back in and began at a steady pace, frustrated that she wasn't feeling euphoric instantly. He had never slept with a virgin before, but he didn't know it was going to be so unpleasant for Sakura. He didn't like it.

Sakura sat back on the leaves and brush, annoyed by her rhythmic bouncing of her breasts. No, it didn't feel good. She was sore, and not at all happy with her situation. How could she be? Well, she did need to try to enjoy it. She took energy to move her hips around to see if she could find something out of this that felt good. But she quickly seared with pain. Sasuke grabbed her inner thigh and dug his claws into her skin, deep enough to draw blood. She felt it trickle down her thigh until she knew it dribbled onto the ground below her. She yelped.

"Do not move around."

"Ah. . .it hurts. . .doesn't. . .feel. . .it's uncomf-ortable."

Sasuke was once again displeased. He didn't want her to be so uncomfortable. He released her thigh.

"Adjust yourself." He slowed down his thrusts so she could comfortably move around. She shyly moved her hips around, trying to see what felt right. She experimented by bucking her hips into him, forcing him to go in deeper. He grunted. She felt something being brushed, which made her moan. She looked for that spot again, bucking. Sasuke couldn't control himself anymore and sped his thrusts back up to a steady medium pace. But he noticed the sweet spot and kept looking fro it again. He changed his angle and found it. Sakura moaned, throwing her head back. He was finally pleased with the outcome. It all felt wonderful to him, but he wanted her to feel something, too. He didn't want her to regret it.

"Ah. . .there! Ah!"

Sasuke's ego increased tenfold just by Sakura's encouraging moans and mewls. He picked up his tempo, brushing against anything that sent pleasurable jolts through Sakura. She let him know automatically when he did something pleasurable, which he appreciated. Her signals and sounds were turning him on immensely. He ground his hips into her, sending shockwaves of desire through Sakura. She pulled on his neck and brought him down to her. Instinctively, their lips connected in a searing, lust-filled kiss. Sakura sucked on his chilly lip, and he sunk his tongue down into her mouth. His tongues was still cold, but his pants were a little more heated. They both pulled back in a huff, panting more than before. Sasuke began to pump faster.

Sasuke sneaked a peek at her beautiful, glistening face. Her jade eyes were now a glazed-over deep, lust-driven emerald. Her chin was angled towards the treeline, her back arched in a delicate position he didn't think was possible to maintain as long as she had. She was amazing. His spinning crimson eyes smoldered with his own lust.

"Sakura. . ." Sasuke couldn't contain the desire within himself anymore. His tempo became more frantic, and her delicious sounds were fueling him more and more. He could even hear the wet sounds of their lubricated and connected cores moving together. Sakura's breath hitched, and he looked down at her, afraid he had hurt her. But a long moan came from her, and her back arched. Her nails dug into his left shoulder, and he left her release right after she squealed his name, breathlessly. Sakura had her first, very intense orgasm, and it was the most beautiful thing he had ever witnessed.

Sasuke felt her inner walls squeeze his manhood erratically, and felt her release as we witnessed it beautifully on her face. He pumped only a few more times before he thrust as deep as possible into her and released, as well. He prolonged his and her orgasms as long as he could, then collapsed on top of her chest, panting and fighting for his next breath.

Sakura awoke the next morning in her bed, the sun shining. The sun's rays provided a warmth she hadn't felt in a little while. Sakura stretched her arms over her head, waking up to the day. The she shuddered, her eyes darting around. She remembered the night before. Was it all a dream?

Sakura panicked, looking around everywhere. She detected no irregular chakra signature. And she quickly rationalized everything. It was a dream. She woke up in her bedroom. She must have fallen asleep. . .even though she didn't remember going to bed last night. It must be playing tricks on her, this crazy weather. The changing of the seasons.

Sakura fixed herself a cup of coffee and took it in her bedroom with her to get ready for the day. She pulled off her pajamas, which she didn't remember putting on, and grabbed a usual hospital outfit. She drank her coffee quickly, noticing she was going to be late for work if she didn't hurry. But - she didn't shower yet! She looked int he mirror. It sure looked like she had. She still smelled like soap. Oh, well. Maybe she drank herself into a stupor last night and blacked out. Yep, that sounded about right.

This routine lasted her all the way into November, when the chill turned into bitter cold, laughing right in her face every time the sharp freeze crawled against the skin. It told her to relish her dream, because this morbid fear of being alone and being scared of her own shadow would never cease, even when the cold wind ceased to blow.

"Sakura." Naruto ran beside Sakura late in the afternoon, as she was walking home fro work. Alone, of course.

"What is it, Naruto? I need to go to Ino's She ran some tests on me to see why my strange nausea hasn't subsided yet."

"I have bad news. They're unsubstantiated claims, but the crest is unmistakable. Sasuke. . .he's been found dead in-" the rest of Naruto's words were drowned out by the chilling wind. It was now screaming at her, laughing in a shrill, bitter tone. It was all a dream, it was all a dream, it was all a nightmare you wish you had lived. . .

Later, at Ino's home with Shikamaru, her loving husband, Ino greeted her at the door with a wry smile.

"Sakura. . .I'm pregnant! Yay!"

Sakura forced a smile. "I'm so happy for you, Ino!"

"Now, you have to tell me about your significant other you had been hiding from us. I know someone's been on your mind. You were so depressed until around Halloween. And now. . .well. . ." Ino exchanged glances with Shikamaru. "Hon, can you give us the room?"

"Meh. Troublesome women." He stood from the chair he was relaxing in and strode into the kitchen, rummaging in cabinets for food. Just the thought made Sakura unbelievably hungry.

"Sakura. . .is there something you want to tell me?"

She shook her head. "I've been sick. That's all. No time for anything else."

Ino smiled. "Well, you'll have to tell me, because we'll have to know whose name to put on the birth certificate. You're pregnant, Sakura!"

Sakura's world spun out of control. She felt the ground beneath her feet pull out form under her, and she hit the ground with a thud. The bittersweet wind was knocked from her lungs. She fell unconscious due to the weight of the overbearing emotions in her horrible day, but a small, depressed smile tugged at her lips.

'Thank you, Sasuke. . .'

'Take care of the baby. He'll need a wonderful, strong mother in you. I always knew you'd be a strong woman.

I love you.' Black wings flew over the house, going unnoticed by everyone who ran to help Sakura.

Please review!

A strange story, but one I cooked up in less than 12 hours. I never tried a Halloween-inspired one, so I thought it was due time. It's pretty chilling, in true Halloween fashion. Could have more chapters, easily. If enough people wanted it, I could find time to add to it.