His Little Bird [A Naruto Fanfiction] [Shikamaru x OC]

[4] All Dressed In Black

AN: Enjoy this chapter - I know I'm writing a lot lately, but like I said...injured with nothing better to do. Hopefully you guys don't get sick of me :P

Also, below are the two songs that Sen plays, you can listen to them whenever because they set the mood well for the whole chapter (read: cri everi tiem) but there's a specific moment when she plays them.

<3 A

Edit 7/14: This chapter has been changed to get rid of any 1st person POV changes... hopefully it's still bearable. :P

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sen still sat in her room. She hadn't moved since she returned from receiving the news about her sister at the Hokage's Tower two days ago. She hadn't eaten, she hadn't slept. She just at there, staring out the window. Her parents were worried, this behavior was extremely uncharacteristic of the girl. The funeral was today, and they didn't know how she would fare. They didn't even know if she would go. Sen would go, even if her parents didn't think she would. How could she not? Katsumi was her sister. She looked up, hearing a peal of thunder race across the sky, and it opened up, as if to say I am crying with you, too.

Akaihane sat on the bed next to Sen, not daring to take his normal perch on her shoulder. He knew the contact would just make her shudder away and retreat even deeper into the dark hole of despair she'd fallen into. He crooned quietly, his heart hurting for his partner, and wished with all his being that there was something he could do. However, he knew in times like these, he was useless. He could save his partner's life, or give his life to protect her own, but when it came to emotions as powerful as these... he had no siblings, so he could never relate. He could imagine it would be similar to what he would feel if he were to lose Sen, but he didn't even want to begin imagining that.

A soft knock sounded on the bedroom door, but Sen didn't react. Her mother opened the door just a crack, and in a soft, sad voice said, "Sen, we have to leave soon. Please come with us." She stood there for a few moments longer, and when Sen didn't move she sighed and shut the door. Then, for the first time in two days, Sen moved. Her head turned towards the door and she blinked, her eyes stiff from crying. Her face felt dry and cracked, and her throat was scratchy. Moving slowly, working the stiffness out of her joints, she pushed herself off the bed and stripped out of her dirty clothes. Turning to her closet, she pulled out one of the many black outfits she owned. This one was a full kimono, black and silver, with phoenixes embroidered on it in silver thread. Katsumi had bought it for her. She slid on her spandex, wrapped her normal bandages around her body, and tied the kimono's belt around her waist. Hesitating for a moment, she reached out to grab another gift from her sister and put it around her waist. It was a katana with a black sheath she let rest on her left hip. She never used it because it was still too big for her, but she wanted all of her memories of her sister as close to her as possible today.

Slowly, she slipped on a pair of black ninja sandals and held out her arm for Akaihane, who flapped over to perch on the offered limb, a little bewildered. She hadn't requested his presence in two days, and he didn't think that she would any time soon. Not like he was going to complaint though, he missed his familiar perch. He hopped up to her shoulder as she opened the door to her room and stepped out into a world she hadn't seen in two days. As she slowly descended the staircase, her entire family looked up at her. Her strawberry-blonde hair was down, swirling about her as a breeze from the open doors caught it. Her father gazed at her, thinking how beautiful she would be if it wasn't so sad a day. He blinked then, wondering when his little girl had grown up so much. She didn't say a word, just walked past all of them and out the door, heading for the graveyard.