Sasuke vs. the Dream King
In Which Sasuke Acquires a Distaste for the Dream King
His name was Neil Gaiman.
Sasuke, of course, knew him well. After all, she always mentioned his name. With reverence, admiration and even a hint of a schoolgirl crush, the manner in which his name left her lips made Sasuke bristle with some kind of irritation he would never own up to.
She even had a name for him, a pet name of such, 'The Dream King' she said fondly, her eyes starry and a smile tugging at the corner of her lips.
Sasuke would only reply with a snort or a snide comment muttered under his breath sometimes.
Dream King, my ass, he thought darkly. More like a loser king to me.
He was NOT jealous. Just to make things clear…
Why would he be jealous? He was an Uchiha, first and foremost. Uchihas are never contested, never relegated to being second and most definitely never the last. They are winners, by blood, by virtue and by destiny.
From scholastic endeavours, athletics, career and even the pursuit of women, he had bested them all.
So why was he griping about this Gaiman person stealing her attention.
His girlfriend, Hinata, was possibly the sweetest and gentlest creature in all of creation. She always did good, a trait, Sasuke was sure, she shared with Mother Teresa, Princess Diana or St. Francis of Assisi. Pure and good, she was that.
But just because she always did good and was always so sweet and gentle didn`t mean she was a pushover. Before Sasuke got to know her he initially didn't like her. He deemed her too kind and too shy, things he didn't think were for the best.
Then he found out she was intelligent, witty and sometimes bared a sharp tongue when waffled or hoodwinked. Then he started to become fascinated with her, even starting to like her and he pursued her then, intent to win her heart. He had struggled a bit, to which he would never admit blatanly, with courting her. He discovered, with slight amusement, that she had a weird sense of humor and can be stoic at moments of concentration.
She was a Hyuuga, after all, and they were ruthless, no-nonsense and monosyllabic at the best of times. It was simply a miracle of nature that Hinata was born of them.
He liked her, in all honesty and pride aside, even admitting that he saw her as someone he could love and can't be without. She was his number one and it would be a grand thing if he was her's too.
His beloved, his lovely Hinata, loved to read. It was her most favourite thing to do. Heaps upon heaps of novels, manuals, biographies, periodicals and even graphic novels came could be seen around her study and library, all arranged neatly and tidily but were read on a daily basis. She took books everywhere, her family told him so, sharing tales of how adults often searched her clothes for any smuggled books during family activities. Lest she ignore the activity altogether and get lost in her own world as she read her beloved book. Sometimes she took books to training sessions, after which she'd enjoy them after working up a sweat (which was a bit frustrating for Sasuke, who wanted to do other sweat-inducing activities, if you know what I mean, with his girlfriend). Other times, when she had time to spare, she can be seen with a book on her lap, enjoying a fine day and getting lost in her own world.
Sasuke was generally unaffected by this, even purchasing novels novels and graphic novels he knew she'd like or knew that was missing form her collection. He took great lengths to make her happy this way, feeling fulfillment once she gave him that gracious smile and even more prideful once he got that special prize, if you, again, know what I mean, if he made her particularly happy.
Troubles with her fondness for books were far from his mind.
That is, until Neil Gaiman came along.
Sasuke often saw books around her library and even her bedside table, books with 'Neil Gaiman' embossed upon their covers. At first he paid them no mind, maybe it was an author that she favored. After all, he could count on Hinata, to know the finest piece of literature. Besides, she read other things, like books by J.K. Rowling, Jane Austen, Bob Ong, Rudyard Kipling and even H.P. Lovecraft (which was a bit unnerving once he thought about it).
Then he noted that the books by Neil Gaiman were indeed many in number in her collection, were often cared for more than the others and lined upon the shelves with utmost care and in perfect order. Whenever he saw Hinata, a book of this Gaiman guy was always near. Always carrying these around, poring over its pages with rapt attention.
He was definitely curious as to who this Neil Gaiman was.
'Who is this Neil Gaiman?' questioned Sasuke, feigning curiosity, as he studied a thick book. The picture upon the cover was a dark gray road spanning into the horizon, white lightning streaking the cloudy grey sky. 'American Gods' was its title.
Hinata, sitting upon her mahogany desk in her study while finishing a mission report that was due two days later, looked up as her her pale fingers combed the stary dark fair falling over her pearly eyes. 'Yes, Sasuke?' Then her eyes strayed over the thing that Sasuke held up. 'Oh, he's a writer, he lived in Britain but he's based in the US now, love.'
'Is he any good?'
That was the worst thing he could have asked. The moment the question left his mouth, she possibly glowed with excitement, fire in her eyes. 'Why, he's a wonderful writer! His wit, his imagery, his style, his tone and flair, word upon word of pure genius!'
Then she went on to describe all the works she's read, every idea and story she absorbed and loved. She was smitten with every story, all by Neil Gaiman.
Sasuke did not look impressed. In fact, he can feel some sort of cloud rumbling within him, something bitter blossoming upon the tip of his tongue and a green haze clouding his vision.
He DID NOT like Neil Gaiman.