Empty Eyes: Book 1

Chapter 6

Even after Mikoto wrapped her arm around my shoulders to effectively create some distance between my seething mother and me, my eyes watered and I tried to keep myself from crying.

Mom and Ino would never be able to tell because this was their first time meeting her, but the queen's smile was much less natural than usual as she greeted them, "You must be Mrs. Haruno. I must commend you on raising such a delightful daughter. She's brought a light into our lives we didn't even know we were missing."

The Uchiha matriarch gave my shoulders a light squeeze of reassurance as I stared at my mom with a look of betrayal.

"My name is Mikoto Uchiha and I welcome you to our home."

Finally, Mom seemed to realize just who she was standing before and tore her eyes from my angry face to lay eyes on the royal as though she'd forgotten where she was, "Of course, Your Highness. Pardon the moment I took to discipline my child. The fact that she disrespected your family and God with her actions is completely unacceptable. Sakura has always been..." she paused to shoot me a short look of disappointment before returning her gaze to the taller woman, "rebellious, but she's never committed a crime before. I apologize on her behalf."

Mebuki Haruno leaned forward in a bow. My humiliation continued to grow the longer the day drew on. She made me sound like an absolute pest!

Mikoto let out a twinkly laugh, removing her arm from my shoulders to instead lay a hand on my mother's so the woman would rise back to her full height, "Now, now, Mrs. Haruno. All has been forgiven. We've all made mistakes before, right?"

I bit my tongue as my mom simply frowned. Please, please, please don't say anything that makes you sound like a heretic. Luckily, she seemed to be in some sort of trance as she stared deeply into the queen's eyes. After a moment of tense silence, Mikoto removed her hand from Mom's arm and gestured for Ino to step forward, as she'd been standing back slightly and watching the scene unfold with an easily-readable look of discomfort on her pretty features.

"You must be Ino. My Dear, you are quite the beauty just like your sister. I'm so pleased to meet you."

My sister stepped forward and gave a polite bow, looking polished with a bright smile on her lips. Her eyes sparkled with admiration as she gazed up at the gorgeous woman before her. She'd always dreamed of being someone important like Mikoto, so it didn't surprise me that she was reacting this way.

"My mother and I are humbled by your invitation."

I surveyed her appearance as she rose back up. Her hair was styled flawlessly and rolled over her shoulder in soft, loose curls. Her homemade dress was the same light blue as her eyes and since it was one that I didn't recognize, I inferred that they'd somehow found a way to keep Ino working after my arrest and our house being ruined.

Tears dripped down my cheeks, surprising all four of us women, and I couldn't stop myself from stepping forward and pulling my twin into a tight hug. Sometimes you don't realize how much you've missed a person until they're directly in front of you. Ino didn't seem surprised and even seemed to also be a bit emotional as she wrapped her arms around me.

She spoke quieter to try and hide the fact that her voice was wavering, but I heard her clearly, "I was so worried!"

We eventually pulled apart and attempted to pull ourselves together, Ino wiping anxiously at her eyes to try and hide the fact that she'd been crying at all.

A soft sigh from behind us snapped my focus from Ino and I looked over to see Mikoto smiling at us with her hands clamped together under her chin, "Isn't that lovely? If only my boys cared for each other like that, right Sakura?"