A/n: This was inspired by my desire to write a tribute to Haku-chan! This contains underlying yaoi references, so… enjoy?
Haku's Lullaby
As the days drew longer and the ice slowly melted, the dew drops, frozen, stuck to the windows. Dew at night didn't glisten like it did in the day.
A seemingly subtle movement flickered the flame of a candle that was inside. The light moved, roared and then dimmed. A figure draped in a lightly coloured yukata, worked it's way closer to a bed which was placed against the wall.
"Haku," came a gruff male's voice from the bed.
"Don't talk," the figure instructed sternly. As the figure's effeminate figure waltzed closer to the bed, it's face was caught in the shallow light of more candles. The face of the figure was distinctively female, but the body…
A small smile graced the lips of the (now established) boy. But the man who burdened the bed noticed a look of worry in his "doctor's" eyes.
"I feel fine, Haku," Zabuza argued of his "carer".
"You can barely move and you expect me to believe you are fine?" The young teen looked at his saviour.
"You are planning to draw blood again?" Zabuza saw no more reason for his life-blood to be drained. He'd lost enough from fighting Kakashi.
"Hold still," Haku ordered even though there was no use, Zabuza could barely move his mouth, let alone the rest of his body. He flinched as the zenbon needles penetrated the skin of his idol. Zabuza barely flinched. His gaze was set sternly upon the intelligent teen, who was humming as he re-did bandages from previous blood-lettings.
"Now sleep," Haku chuckled as he turned to leave and clean his needles.
"He is still a child…" Zabuza trailed off as his voice fell on deaf ears, and then he closed his eyes to begin a slumber.
When Haku returned, his needles still soaking, Zabuza was sleeping soundly, occasionally snoring lightly. Haku sat, silently, at his chair next to Zabuza's bed. It was lucky he learnt to sleep sitting up, and the amounts of nights he'd been sleeping like that, he was surprised that he'd become so accustomed to it. He began to sew the rips in his Okinawan styled kimono (the one he used when being the hunter nin). If Zabuza knew of his sewing, he would see it as weakness, so Haku would only do it once Zabuza was asleep.
"He sleeps like an angel, thought he is far from it," Haku whispered to his angels and pondered. He began to wonder if while he slept he shared the same look of peace and serenity as was on the face of his "special person".
Without realizing it, his lips formed words and his voice sang out in an icy, chilled song. The words were formed by a child, it was clear…
"On the night the angels disappeared,
The sunshine went away.
"My cursed self wandered,
With no place to stay…"
Haku drew a short breath and looked at Zabuza's (supposedly) sleeping form.
"But now is a little different from then,
More sun shines through the ice.
"Because the one I love is here beside me,
The scenery looks nice."
Another breath followed by inaudible chuckling.
"The ice is finally melting,
Shadows in the light.
"But my beloved is there,
To hold me through the night…"
"You have a sweet voice, Haku," Zabuza stated from the covers. Haku, after being pulled from his trance, blushed. Zabuza smiled (like his lips twitched), thought you couldn't tell through the mask, and chuckled internally. The boy dropped his usual kimono and raced to fetch something, muttering about herbal tea for Zabuza-sama.
"No need Haku, I will be going back to sleep now," Zabuza said, so Haku made himself busy with fixing himself some water. Anything to not have to face his "friend"…
'He heard me sing my younger-self's lullaby' Haku panicked, ashamed.
'Thank you for sharing your thoughts… and the lullaby, Haku….' Zabuza smiled (again, his mouth seemingly twitched) and closed his eyes.
Haku would still grow and kill and fight, but (hopefully) he would always carry his childlike thoughts and disposition.
And the angels above smiled on the two ex-mist ninjas…
As the days grew shorter and the ice returned, two people looked roughly on as their "saviours" saved their village and were praised by the entire village...
"Naruto has earned his wings," one said to the other.
"Not as literally as we have, Haku," Zabuza chuckled as he drew Haku closer to his body and hugged him. Then he just kept the young angel and held him through the "night"
"Thank you for the lullaby…"
A/n: Well, that was short, sad and I think cute. Go Haku! May he live in the hearts of others forever! Please review and give me your thoughts on this story. Structured criticism appreciated!
TSA