Title: Baby Talk
Fandom: Naruto
Characters: Sakura, Itachi
Summary: Mikoto did always want a daughter... :non-massacre AU, oneshot:
-o--o--o-
The first time Itachi ever saw Sakura, he was almost seven. It was one of the rare days that the Academy wasn't in session, and Mikoto had kept him from practice and took him to the park, Sasuke dozing in a stroller. His mother sat next to a red-haired woman with a stroller of her own. Itachi kept the impassive look on his face as he peeked into the other stroller. A tiny scrap of a girl with a mop of ridiculous pink hair and a rather large forehead was waking up, rubbing her brilliant green eyes. Mikoto was fawning over the little girl, expression giving away her thoughts. As she didn't have a daughter of her own, she loved showering other little girls with affection.
This little girl, upon waking, looked towards her mother. "Momma? Can... I have my juice?" There were pauses in her words that weren't necessary but Mikoto practically squealed as the little girl took her sippy cup from her mother. "Thank you."
"You're welcome, Sakura dear."
The little girl grinned as she drank, looking at the world over the rim of the cup. She stopped when she spotted Itachi, lowering her sippy cup so that she could speak. "Hi! Who awre you?"
He gave her a stiff, polite smile. "My name is Itachi." Uchiha were raised with manners, of course.
"Hewwo Itachi!" Her grin grew bigger. She spoke as if Mikoto couldn't hear her. "Is this nice lady youwr momma?" He nodded. "I like hewr awot!"
"She's speaking so well!" The Uchiha mother gushed to her companion. "How old is she?"
"I'm two!" The little girl proclaimed before her mother could respond, setting her cup down and wiggling out of her seat. Sasuke, now awake, watched her with a bit of envy. He couldn't quite get out of the stroller on his own. The pinkette seemed to notice this and tottered to his side. "Hewwo!" Her smile was infectious. "I'm Sakuwa! What's youwr name?"
The younger of the two boys took comfort in the fact that she couldn't pronounce her 'R's correctly. "Sasuke," he mumbled. His cheeks were pink in a bit of a blush.
Sakura's brow furrowed; her expression was too serious for such a young child. As if suddenly getting a good idea, she spun and darted behind Itachi. She knelt on the ground and picked two flowers from the grass. Running back to her mother she fell. Mikoto waited for the cries that never came, because Sakura just hoisted herself up (protectively clutching the flowers) and continued over to the bench. She gave both women a brilliant smile. "A fwower for my momma," she extended her hand to let her mother take one of the blossoms, "and one fowr Itachi and Sasuke-kun's momma." She took it with an amused air.
"Sakura dear, you have to be more careful." Sakura's mother reached in her bag for band-aids.
The little girl clamored up onto the bench, her nose wrinkling. "Ew, bwood." She plucked the baby wipe from her mother and cleaned off her own knee.
It took two bandages to hold the gash together. "You'll have to be still for a bit, Sakura, so you don't open your leg back up."
Her lower lip stuck out in a pout that would be the downfall of suitors later on in her teenage years, Mikoto could tell. "But momma, I wanted to swing! I wanted to fwy!" Her arms crossed in clear annoyance.
"Sakura, you know that you have to pump your legs to swing, and that means you'll be bleeding again." The tiny child's nose wrinkled again. She clearly didn't like blood.
Itachi shifted a fraction. "I could push Sakura, if she'd like to swing." Mikoto gave her son an encouraging smile.
"You mean it?!" Sakura cried out. "Oh, momma, pwease? Pwease?" Before the woman could even nod, the girl tumbled off the bench and started to hobble towards the older boy. She stopped about halfway, clasping her hands and looking shyly at Itachi. "What..." she murmured, "What about Sasuke-kun?" Both women were a bit surprised to hear her question, but they smiled. Sasuke, from his seat, looking hopefully at the two.
Itachi strode over and picked his little brother up, setting him on his shoulders. "Thank you nii-san." Sakura limped at a rather fast pace and grabbed onto the older boy's hand.
-o-
"Itachi!" Sakura's cheeks were brilliantly red as she slapped her fiancé's arm. "Do you have to tell that story?"
He rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb soothingly. "You were just so adorable at two, my dear."
She scowled. "Adorable, my foot!" Their guest, forgotten, watched the exchange with amusement. "This is just revenge for the rubber ducky incident, isn't it?"
He smirked in reply.
A/N: Not how this was originally supposed to go, but I do like it this way.