So this is an idea that came to me while I was just fooling around on youtube and found this Arabic belly dancing music and was like 'hey, this could be kind of cool maybe I should write it out', which leads us to where we are today.
I've read (and LOVED) so many stores on here where Sasuke is the prince and Sakura is the pore peasant girl and he finds her by chance and they fall in love and blah blah blah. So I just figured, why not spice it up a bit and give our dear Sakura-chan a little personality? Hehe, Sakura is always portrayed as so sweet and innocent that I thought it would be fun to make her all criminal-ish (a.k.a. a thief).
Summary: He was a visiting prince with all the riches of the world. She was a thief struggling to survive. Two people like them were never supposed to meet. But when their eyes met across the crowded streets, the spark was undeniable. Now, our prince just has to find her before his time runs out. The hourglass is ticking.
Disclaimer: I do not (WHY CRUEL WORLD WHY?) own Naruto
Sakura watched as an old man with thinning grey hair locked the door to his shop from the ally across the street. This was a new store for her and the adrenalin was pumping through her veins. In her head she counted to two hundred before slipping across the street. The dark night sky hid her as she dashed into the shadows of the small store. With the festival going on, most people were over on the main roads and only the occasional person or two had passed by in the past hour Sakura had been sitting and waiting.
Reaching into the pocket of her old worn pants, she pulled out a thin piece of twisted metal. Looking quickly once more to make sure no one was around, she stepped out of the shadows and came to kneel in front of the door. Jamming the piece of metal into the keyhole, she expertly twisted it back and forth until she heard a satisfying 'click'. Turning the knob, she stepped into the store, closing and relocking the door behind her.
Looking around, she almost started salivating as she took in the rows of food. It had been almost three days since she had eaten anything.
Moving quickly, the pinkette- dressed entirely in black and dark brown, combed the aisles for good picks. Taking a container of canned peaches off the shelf, she quickly rearranged the remaining cans to cover the hole she created.
Moving to the next aisle she breathed in deeply through her nose the smell of coffee and stared hungrily at the large burlap sacks filed with the sweet smelling beans lined up down the aisle. Extracting a small cloth sack from her dark brown vest pocket, she quickly took a few handfuls and poured them into the bag, pulling the drawstring tight when it was full. Moving her hand through the beans, she smoothed out the indents left by her hand until it looked exactly the way had before.
As Sakura continued moving through the store she picked up little items, one's she was sure would go over looked, and covered up the holes she left behind.
Approaching the door, she shift the weight of the items into her other arm so that she could reach back into her ripped black pants to extract her wire. Just as she was reaching for the handle she saw the silhouette of a man moving towards the store. He was barely ten feet away.
Gasping quietly, Sakura ducked down and dashing back behind one of the tall shelves. Judging by the slow, shuffled stride of the person outside and the fact that they were unlocking the door, which meant they had a key, there was a good chance that it was the owner of the store who had just entered. The old man who owned the small grocery store was well into his eighties and had trouble seeing, something that Sakura prayed meant that he hadn't seen her.
There was some shuffling around and the sound of the cash register being opened then the sound of feet moving back towards the door. Sakura let out a silent sigh of relief as she sagged slightly, her heart rate gradually slowing down.
Loosening the death grip she had on the items in her hands she allowed herself to breath again as she heard the old man open the door. But then she felt a shift, something move in her arms and suddenly a orange was falling out of her arms and down, down onto the floor. The dull thud it made seemed almost deafening in the silence and Sakura felt her heart start to race again, this time twice as fast, as the footsteps in the front of the store stopped before turning and coming towards her.
Panicking, Sakura jumped behind another shelf, further away from the fallen orange. Peeking out from around the side, she watched the hunched form of the old man appear out from between one of the other aisles and observed with baited breath as he slowly leaned down, plucking the orange up off the floor.
He stared at it for a moment before reaching over and putting it back in the crate with the others just a few feet in front of were he was. As he turned to leave again, Sakura let out an almost silent breath of relief, nearly falling to the floor. But it hadn't been silent enough because for a second time the old man's footsteps stopped before moving back towards her.
Sakura's heart almost burst as she turned her panicky gaze back and forth, looking for a new hiding spot. Seeing a display crate of coconuts nestled between a few other taller boxes, she dove for the spot, just barely managing to pull her legs in before the old man turned down the aisle. He stood there for a minute, looking for what had created the soft sigh he had heard earlier. But after a few minutes, he shrugged it off as nothing more than his old mind playing tricks on him and walked back to the door, exiting and locking it behind him.
Leaning her head against the crate behind her, Sakura choked back a sob of relief. As she rose to her feet, she looked around cautiously. Tonight had been far to close.
Grabbing a coconut from the crate in front of her, Sakura ran to the entrance and grabbed her lock pick out of her pocket. Finally exiting, she locked the door and dashed off into the allies.
Sakura ran as quickly as she could through the narrow back streets without tripping or dropping any of the items in her arms. Ino was going to kill her!
Finally reaching her street, Sakura ran down the road and skidded to a stop in front of an old run down apartment. She was just about to reach for her key when the door was wrenched open revealing a very angry Ino.
"You're late forehead," she fumed.
"I know I'm sorry!"
"We have to been there in five minutes and it'll take at least ten to get there with all the crowds," Ino continued to rant even as her friend moved past her and into the house, setting her stolen items down on the table. Judging by the fact that her sister hadn't come to steal the canned peaches and her mother hadn't come to chastise her for her actions; she assumed that both had already left for the festival.
"Let's go forehead," Ino called as she ran out of the house.
Sighing, Sakura ran to follow her best friend, locking the door as she left.
"Come on Sakura, we're gonna be late!" Ino called as she wove her way through the crowds. Sakura scowled as she followed her blond friend, making no effort at all to quicken her stride.
Lanterns in colors ranging from yellow to purple, to blue to red were strung up above the packed streets, casting rainbow beams of light down onto the ground. The air was filled with the sounds of fast, spirited music as happy civilians talked and celebrated under the bright desert night sky. Along the sides of the streets stalls filled with games and cuisines were filled with people. Sunagakure's annual summer festival was in full swing and all of the village's occupants were enjoying themselves.
All but one girl that is.
Growling slightly in annoyance, Sakura quickened her stride to keep her best friend in view as more people jostled her back and forth. Oh how she despised crowds or more specifically people.
As the duo neared the square situated in the middle of the village the crowds began to thicken and the music amplified in volume. Pushing through one last group of people, Sakura finally managed to reach the large stage built directly in the middle of the plaza.
"Hurry Sak, Anzu will kill us if we're late!" Ino called as she turned right, sticking to the side of the stage as the they finally made it to a small set of double doors that went almost completely unnoticed to the general public.
Swiftly throwing them open, the pair shot down into the off stage area below, Sakura gently shutting the doors behind them.
"You're both late," called a voice.
Both girls had their hands on their knees as they struggled to regain their breaths. Despite not seeing the speaker, both girls already knew whom the voice belonged to. Anzu Narita walked swiftly up to the two young girls, each stride full of grace and elegance.
"You're both due up on stage in less than twenty minutes and neither of you are even close to being ready!" she shrilled, glaring heatedly at them.
The two girls flinched as the older woman yelled at them. Sakura just barely held back a growl as she glared up at the woman through the curtain of her bangs. If it weren't for the hefty sum of money that would be given to all the performers at the end of the night, she wouldn't have even bothered to show up.
"Now go, get dressed quickly."
Turning on her heel, the tall brunette walked away from the two.
Now that her "teacher" was out of ear shot, Sakura let out a hissed as she damned the woman into the deepest pits of hell.
"Cranky old wench," the pinkette hissed.
"Ignore her Sakura, we have to get ready," Ino stated as she started towards the makeup tables that were already surrounded by groups of girls.
Their quiet chatter soon became clear to Sakura as she pushed to her table and sat down, picking up a makeup brush and lightly dusting the pale pink powder over her smooth cheeks.
"I can't believe the prince of Konoha is going to be here!" gushed a dark brown haired girl to Sakura's left.
"I know! I've only ever seen his picture once in a news stand article and I swear, I fell in love then and there!" called back another brown haired girl, although her locks were significantly lighter than the first girls, as she applied hefty amounts of dark purple eye shadow to her lids.
More girls piped up to put in their opinions about the visiting prince but Sakura just snorted. She would never understand the way girls who let their hormones guide them worked, the entire notion was just to far fetch for her to grasp.
Choosing a shimmery gold color, Sakura applied it to her lids before picking up a black eye stick and tracing the edges of her eyes with it. She absolutely despised make up but Anzu refused to let her up onto the stage unless she coated her face with it first. Adding a small coat of peach colored shimmer to the gold, she quickly coated her lashes with mascara and stood from her table.
Gliding over to the rows of clothes, she moved pieces around until she came across her own and took it off the rack. Sakura quickly made her way behind the changing curtain and pulled it closed snuggly behind her.
Slipping her plain and slightly tattered cloths to the floor, she pulled on the uncomfortable belly dancing outfit and turning to look in the mirror at herself.
The top was nothing more than a bra with a single strap that went behind her neck. It was a bright sky blue color and had short gold tassels that hung over the fabric, highlighting the lively shade of blue and longer strings of matching golden tassels hanging down from the bottom of the top to just above her bellybutton in a way that complimented her flat if not slightly skinny stomach and her womanly curves. The bottom was a tightfitting skirt that went only an inch or two below her hips in a downwards-facing triangle shape and continued down to her ankles in sheer with splits on both sides. It was the same bright sky blue color as the top and had identical hanging gold tassels added in in the sheer part. Simple gold sandals with straps over her toes and the middle of her foot finished the outfit.
Glaring at her reflection, Sakura rapped a matching blue scarf with gold embroidering around her face until only her eyes showed. Checking to make sure none of her hair was visible, she exited the changing stall and ventured back into the main area.
"Sakura!"
Turning, Sakura observed Ino as she ran up to her, having just left one of the changing rooms herself. Her outfit was a rich purple color with gold embroidering and tassels, similar to Sakura's except the top had only a small strip of hanging decorations coming from the middle of the piece.
"Don't you just love dressing up," the blond gushed. Unlike her companion, she and most of the other dancers chose only to wear thin sheer scarves around their faces unlike the heavy fabric one Sakura was wearing.
"No," she shot back, glaring menacingly at the blond.
"Alright! Everyone line up!" Anzu called, capturing the attention of all the girls.
Quickly they all assembled before their instructor, eagerly awaiting the chance to dance up on stage in front of their village and their neighboring village of Konoha's royal family.
Slowly, almost dragging her feet, Sakura made her way to the back of the line, glaring at all the squealing girls in front of her.
"Sakura come here!"
Before she could even comprehend what was going on, Sakura found herself being dragged to the front of the line by an overly enthusiastic Ino and pushed into place. Looking up, she literally groaned when she saw that she was the first in line.
Just her luck.
"Alright, start walking," Anzu instructed.
"Go on forehead," Ino practically sang as she shoved her friend hard between the shoulder blades.
Grunting in a very unladylike fashion, Sakura sent a quick glare over her shoulder before starting up the wooden stairs.
Immediately her ears were assaulted by noise as she stepped up onto the stage and her mind took a moment to differentiate it all. Music from a band off in the far left corner of the plaza weaved its way through the air over the loud cheering of the crowd that surrounded the large wooden platform that she and the other girls were about to preform on. The crowd went from the very edge of the stage to well out into the streets that fed into the square. Men, women, and children of all ages watched her with eager eyes as Sakura walked gracefully out onto the front of the stage, followed soon after by the rest of the performers.
Directly in front of Sakura lay another raised platform, except this one was made of concrete and had steps in front leading up to the top. At the top of this platform stood a small line of thrones. In the tallest and grandest one, situated directly in the middle, the king of Suna sat proudly; his queen perched elegantly in a slightly smaller throne directly to his left. Next to the queen, their three children sat in thrones of their own. To his right was the Konoha royal family. King Fugaku sat closest to him, and from then on was his queen and lastly his own two children.
Rich red draperies embroidered with gold designs hung above them, shielding them from the elements. Matching thick, shag carpets had been placed below their feet and between each throne was a short table, most covered with empty or partially full glasses.
Sakura only just managed to hold back a glare as she watched the two families chat with each other, internally cursing them all to hell for what she was about to do for their 'entertainment'.
Just as she heard the beginning few cords of the number, Sakura took one last look at the families and froze when her eyes met bottomless onyx. Gasping softly, Sakura felt herself become lightheaded as she momentarily forgot how to breathe. Her heart tugged and she had to stop herself from jumping off the stage and running towards the person.
Broadening her sights, she realized she was looking into the eyes of the youngest prince of Konoha.
Sasuke glared unhappily out the carriage window as he and the rest of his family entered into Sunagakure between the tall stucco walls.
"Sasuke-chan, at least try to be happy, we'll only be here for a week," Mikoto gently told her youngest son as she quietly observed his unhappy expression.
"Of course okaa-san," Sasuke answered back, although his gaze never left the passing streets outside his window.
Suddenly, the carriage pulled to a stop and a moment later a young tenant who couldn't have been more than sixteen pulled the door open. Sighing, Sasuke waited for the rest of his family to exit before stepping out himself.
Immediately his skin was assaulted by the scorching desert sun and a wave of humidity hit him. The frown on his face deepened as he trailed after the rest of his family into the Sunagakure palace.
It was an enormous structure built with a large square bottom and towers shooting out at seemingly random intervals. It was made out of the same beige colored stucco as the outer wall with the occasional window breaking the tall stretch of material.
Despite the rather drab outside, the inside was like an explosion of color. Skillfully woven tapestries depicting everything from peaceful meadows to gruesome battles were rung up on the walls and on the floor deep Persian carpets in a myriad of colors cushioned the sounds of the small procession's footsteps. Plush couches and armchairs in soft cotton and smooth velvet ranging from deep purples to vibrant reds filled the rooms.
Sasuke passed through the halls with a stoic face, hardily even blinking at his grand surroundings. They weaved through the halls, led by a pair of maids, till they came upon an even more extravagantly furnished room with an extremely tall ceiling.
Design paintings and tapestries covered much of the wall space and plush rugs were practically stacked on top of each other, their vibrant and intricate patterns melding together to form a beautiful display of color. Couches set low to the ground and overly stuffed armchairs were placed facing each other for easy conversation. Huge glassless windows covered the entire far wall and in the top left corner a palm tree set in a large painted pot grew; it's wide leaves almost reaching the towering ceiling.
"Ah, Fugaku, it's so nice to see you," a low voice called.
Rising from one of the couches towards the top right corner of the room was Bishamon, king of Sunagakure.
"As it is good to see you as well Bishamon," replied the king of Konoha.
Deep rust red hair streaked with grey sat atop the sand king's head and as he approached the visiting royals, the weather lines from both age and years of ruling a kingdom becoming visible on his face as he got closer.
"I trust your journey here was pleasant?" started Bishamon.
As the two kings started to converse, movement from the chairs near the couch Bishamon had just vacated caught Sasuke's attention.
Heads of brown, blond, and red crested over the back of the couch and after a moment the faces of Suna's two princes and princess came into view.
Gaara was the first to come to stand behind his father, followed seconds later by his brother and sister.
Feeling someone's eyes on him, Sasuke turned and saw Temari shooting his a flirtatious look. Internally groaned, Sasuke shifted from foot to foot as he listened to his father's conversation.
"Well, I can only assume that you all are very tired from your journey and I would not want your fatigue to interfere will your enjoyment of tonight's festivities," clapping his hands once a pair of maids, both with brown hair of lighter and darker tones, dressed in simple loose black dresses rushed forward, immediately curtseying to their king.
"Bring them to their rooms," Bishamon ordered and both maids bowed their heads respectfully before turning to the Uchiha family, once again curtseying.
"If you would please follow us, we will take you to your quarters," the lighter haired servant spoke quietly, eyes downcast.
"Thank you very much," Mikoto spoke, smiling gently at the young attendant.
A gentle blush ghosted over the youth's face as a shy smile graced her delicate features.
"Well go on," Fugaku ordered and both maids jumped, looking guiltily down at the ground before starting back down the hallway the Uchiha family had just come through.
Turning swiftly on his heel, Sasuke moved quickly to follow the maids and to escape the predatory looks the desert princess was sending his way.
He followed the two girls back down the hallway before they turned left, the opposite direction they had originally came from.
Sasuke observed the stain glass windows and exotic textiles with an air of disinterest as he followed the small girls leading him. They twisted and turned through snaking halls before coming to a winding staircase. The stairwell was vacant of any windows and was lite only by torches stuck into the wall, the flames causing strangely shaped shadows to appear and dance on the desert stone. Reaching the top, they turned right and went straight down the hall before both maids stopped and turning, curtseying low to the ground.
"You majesties, the door to your left is for the king and queen while the door to your right is for prince Itachi-sama. The door beyond that to the right is for prince Sasuke-sama."
Bowing their heads and keeping their eyes on the ground, both attendants rushed to open the doors for the royals.
With a grunt, Fugaku turned and walked swiftly into his chamber, Mikoto following right on his heels.
"At least try to act like civilized will you otouto? You have a few hours to stop brooding before we leave for the festival," Itachi jabbed as he walked past his now steaming younger brother and into his assigned room, nodding politely to the maids before disappearing inside.
Cursing his older brother silently, Sasuke stalked past the two startled young girls and into his room, slamming the heavy wooden door closed behind him.
Sasuke stormed across the room and collapsed onto the bed. The chamber was rather spacious and extremely luxurious. The floor was made of tiles in different shades of blue while the walls were the same beige colored cement as the rest of the palace. Wooden torches places in steel holders lined the walls, casting a warm glow on the room. In the near left corner sat a deep purple L-shaped couch, a short round shaped table situated in front of it. Two plush armchairs, one red with gold designs artfully stitched into it and the other a bright lime green with purple designs, also sat around the low mahogany table. In the right near corner was a giant leaning mirror with a dark, carved wooden frame, a tall dark blue vase full of peacock feathers placed to the left of it. Next to the mirror was another heavy looking wooden door that Sasuke could only assume led to the bathroom.
The far half of the room was elevated a foot higher, a single step dividing the room in half. In the right corner was an enormous bed with dark blue silk sheets and stitched pillows of bright oranges and greens, as well as other colors, placed neatly at the head. The canopy was of the same carved dark wood as the mirror and dark blue drapes that matched the sheets on the bed were tied back with thin red ribbons that with just the slip of the wrist could be untied and the billowy curtains would surround the bed, blocking any occupants from view. Next to the bed was a small nightstand with a single drawer, a candleholder placed on top.
Across from the bed in the far left corner was a large dresser with two columns of wide double black medal handled drawers, four in each column. Just next to it in the meeting corner was a glassless window that allowed the air to circulate easily through the room, a small bookshelf placed just under it. Laid across the whole room were deep, soft carpets stitched with countless colors and enhanced with beautifully intricate designs.
A sigh dragged through the young prince's lips as he rolled on his back and stared at the ceiling.
He had no interest what so ever in going to the summer festival and was dreading when in a few hours his brother would come knocking on his door, telling him it was time to go.
Sasuke also knew that as soon as he got to the festival he would be forced to sit and watch for hours as performers danced and sang while food he didn't want would be shoved down his throat. Oh yes, he was dreading going to this festival.
Releasing another sigh he rolled onto his side, cushioning his head with his left arm as he gazed at the wall. Slowly his eyelids drooped and after a few moments sleep washed over him.
"Wake up otouto."
Blinking open hazy onyx orbs, Sasuke looked up and saw his aniki standing over his bed.
"We leave for the festival in ten minutes so I suggest you get ready." With that said, Itachi turned on his heel and walked swiftly back out of his younger brother's room.
Pushing himself up, Sasuke swung his legs out and placed his feet lightly on the ground. Running a hand through his unruly black locks, the prince pushing himself to his feet and walked leisurely to the bathroom, pulling the weighty wood door open as if it weighed nothing. Turning the tap on, he splashed cold water on his face, whipping away the last dregs of sleep. Taking a towel from the basket next to the faucet, the royal dried his face before placing the towel down on the counter.
Reentering his bedroom, Sasuke took a moment to stop before continuing on and out into the hallway. As he stepped out he noticed his brother leaning against the wall between their rooms with his arms crossed, the sole of one foot placed up against the wall while the other stayed flat on the ground.
A pregnant silence fell over the brothers as they both stood silently, the only light coming from the torches lining the walls and the of the moon filtering in from the window at the far end of the hallway.
"How long do you think we'll be at the festival?" Sasuke asked, breaking the silence.
"Defiantly more than a few hours, probably well into the morning," Itachi replied.
Before Sasuke could answer, the door to their parents' chamber swung open and the king and queen emerged.
"Hello boys," Mikoto greeted, smiling gently at her two sons.
"Mother," Itachi replied while Sasuke just tipped his head in greeting. Both boys gave a nod to their father.
The far off sound of footsteps reached the family's ears and they all turned to look left down the hall. A moment later the same two maids that had guided them earlier appeared from around he bend. They both hastened their strides when they saw the waiting group.
"Your majesties," both said, curtsying as they came to a stop.
"His royal highness and his family are waiting for you by the front entrance," said the girl with the dark hair.
"Take us to them," Fugaku said and both maids bowed their heads before turning and heading back down the hall from which they just come.
They went back down the staircase and through the halls until they all came around a bend and suddenly the front entrance and the royal desert family were in view.
"Fugaku," greeted the king.
"Bishamon," the Konoha ruler replied.
"Ah Mikoto-chan, it's so good to see you again!" said Karura as she stepped out from behind her husband.
"Karura-chan! I'm so glad to see you to," Mikoto said back as the two queens exchanged a friendly but still mannerly hug.
Just as the two women were about to launch into a conversation, the sand king interrupted, "Karura, the carriages are waiting."
"Oh! Right," she replied, returning to his side.
With that said the two families both turned and exited, each moving to their own carriage.
Stepping inside, Sasuke sat down next to the window, mentally gathering together all of his patience in preparation for the next few hours.
With a slight lurch, the carriage started forward and the world started to move outside the window. Happy towns people ambled around on the street, laughing and joking with their friends as they enjoyed the festival. Almost all of them though stopped for at least a moment to watch the grand carriages roll by.
After what felt like only a moment, the carriage once again stopped and a second later the driver opened the door.
Stepping out into the hot desert night, Sasuke looked around at the crowds before following behind his brother as both families made their way to the raised up area where a line of thrones sat.
Taking the one farthest away, the young prince once again surveyed the crowds form his new vantage point.
They were in the front of a square with a large wooden stage in the middle and far off in the top left corner of the plaza a band played. Sighing, he leaning back in his chair and prepared for the night.
Over the next few hours performances varying from fire-eaters to snake tamers took the stage. But it wasn't until the end of the performances that the most people packed into the square. Then, a small trap door in the middle of the stage opened and a petite body dressed in bright blue stepped out. Cheers erupted from the crowd as more girls filed out after the first and positioned themselves around the stage.
The same girl who had been the first to appear on the stage came and stopped directly in front of the youngest prince and for just a moment she lifted her head to observe her surroundings, but that was all it took. Sasuke froze as bright emerald eyes came to look directly into his own. Somewhere in the back of his mind he heard the music start but it didn't matter, all he could focus on was the way his heart was thumping and the girl dressed in blue in front of him.
Sakura continued to stare at the prince for another moment before she registered the music starting to play and began to dance.
Ino had always said she was an amazing dancer and she simply let her body move with the music. The steps had become almost automatic for her in the past few week as Anzu drilled them into her again and again. She almost didn't have to think about it anymore.
Sasuke watch as the girl moved to the beat of the music. She flowed like water and each step was graceful and skilled. Each roll of her hips sent shivers down his spine and the outfit she was wearing wasn't helping much either.
Whenever she could, Sakura would sneak a look at the prince and every time she checked, his eyes were always trained on her. Just thinking about those bottomless onyx orbs made her skin crawl, in a good way, and her breath quicken.
The song was ending and as the last crescendo sounded, Sakura spun on her heel as fast as she could before dropping onto one knee, just as the final beat sounded.
Wild cheers erupted from the crowd as Sakura rose slowly to her feet. Quickly all the dancers made for the trap door and Sakura followed behind. But just as she was about to step in, she turned and looked back over her shoulder one last time.
The prince was still looking at her.
Sasuke watched as she slowly rose to her feet, turning and walking swiftly towards the trap door from which she had entered but a few minutes ago. Just as she was about to step below, she paused and looked over her shoulder. Her eyes met his and Sasuke felt his heart beat feaster. Her large, doe like emerald eyes bore into him for a moment before she turned and jumped down below the stage.
As people continued to cheer, Sasuke just sat quietly in his seat. His mother had said they would be staying in Suna for one week. That meant he had one week to find this girl in blue.
And finished! So did it suck, rock, suck ass, or totally just blow your mind? I want to know! Please review I would really appreciate some positive feedback although friendly criticism is also greatly appreciated but please no flames. The ideas are really rolling for me with this story so hopefully the next update should be relatively soon. Thanks for reading!