Disclaimer: Don't own, don't sue.
Sasuke could smell the sea breeze even before the automobile came to a shuddering halt, the sound of seagulls a distant, never-ending echo in his ears. He allowed himself to be gently helped off the vehicle, and he took a deep breath, the sweet nautical air doing nothing to alleviate the pressure of dread on his heart.
"Is that our ship, brother?" he murmured as the man he was to refer to as his fiancé joined him outside the coach. He carefully disguised how impressed he was by the sheer girth of the thing; it was by far the largest boat he had ever seen in his life, far grander in scale than anything he'd seen in London.
Dark brows drew together slowly, and Itachi moved to offer his hand to the boy stepping out of the carriage. "You're not to address me as that as long as we're here," he reminded the other in a deep, disapproving voice. "You know the rules, Sasuke."
He glanced towards the ship and gave it a slight approving nod. It was just as he had been promised. The tickets to ride first class on its virgin voyage had cost him a pretty penny, but he was already sure that it would be worth the price.
"Driver," he commanded coolly, "Take our things to baggage. We'll be boarding the ship now, so be sure to bring the carriage around to where it needs to be to get on that ship."
A light flush crept onto Sasuke's cheeks and he glanced away from Itachi, fanning himself as he began to feel rather faint. The breezy harbour was a welcome change from the stuffy interior of the car, but it was still incredibly hot, and the clingy dress Itachi had chosen for him to wear wasn't helping any. He straightened his hat so it better blocked the sun, and held tightly onto his brother's arm. "Shall we go inside?" he said nonchalantly, desperate to get out of the heat.
Itachi nodded, leading Sasuke out of the car and up towards the ramp for the boat. "Of course," he said with a nod. "You need to change before dinner. You look an incredible mess, Sasuke. You really need to learn how to keep yourself looking immaculate. That's the way I expect my wife to act when we leave our house."
From here, he could see dozens of people, dressed in their Sunday best, loading onto the boat, and he moved into the specific line that lead up to the first class quarters. His family was far above waiting with filthy, disease-ridden commoners. "Don't dawdle," he instructed, tugging a little at his brother.
Glancing warily about, Sasuke allowed himself to be steered onto the boat by his brother, the other's words passing over him like waves, never quite sticking. "Yes, bro-Itachi," he said firmly, faltering slightly at the name. It wouldn't do to blunder while he was posing as the other's trophy fiancée. Already he felt like screaming, but he kept his gaze carefully vacant as they passed through the interior, the eyes of many a fellow aristocrat following them to their suite.
The cabin was, of course, lavish in every way possible, but Sasuke was hardly impressed by it. "Bring in my art, please," he told one of the servants, eyes moving over the walls for possible places to hang his prized paintings. He wouldn't think of going on any sort of journey without them.
Itachi pulled his arm away from his brother's as they moved into the suite, and he glanced around, heading into his room as well, glancing about to make sure that everything was in proper order.
It took another moment before he made his way out to where his brother was standing, a few wrinkles adorning the expensive dress he was wearing, and Itachi frowned a little, watching as the maid brought in a few rather large portfolios he knew held the pieces of so-called art his brother had insisted on buying.
"Did you need to bring that trash with you?" he asked haughtily.
A frown marred Sasuke's delicate features and he strode over to one of the canvases, lifting it and holding it against the wall. "It isn't trash," he said defensively, moving it around to catch the light. "It's Pica...Picas...Picasso! He's very famous." He settled on a spot near the chest of drawers, and set it to lean against the wall. Just then, a servant walked forward bearing Itachi's safe, and set it heavily next to the painting, blotting out the light.
Shaking his head slowly, Itachi frowned a little staring at what his brother was referring to art. "It looks like a finger painting," he argued, arms crossing over his chest. "It's a waste of money. In two years I'm sure you'll let it find its way to where it belongs." It really was quite hideous.
Still shaking his head, Itachi stepped forward, opening his safe and investigating it carefully before closing it and nodding for the servant to carry it to his private room. "One day you'll learn to see what real art is."
Sasuke fell silent, watching as the safe was carried away and the sun once again fell on the beautiful painting. "Where it belongs," he whispered almost silently, the heavy weight of dread falling over him again. He watched as the other servants brought in his many cases overflowing with extravagant dresses and gowns, and suddenly he felt like crawling into one of them, curling up and hiding forever.
Itachi nodded turning away from his brother and moving towards his room after the servant. "Don't forget to dress appropriately, Sasuke. I expect to see you dressed clean and proper. I don't want to be embarrassed by you. I hope we're clear," he said firmly, closing the door behind him. He had a lot to do.
--
The ship's blow horn was nearly deafening, and by the time, the two third-class boys made it to the cabins below deck the RMS Titanic had already lurched into movement. Kiba stumbled along, following his friend as they made to toss their belongings into the filthy cabin, ignoring the bewildered looks they got from the Swedes who had already bunked there.
"Damn, we really have them confused!" the Irish boy laughed, giving his friend's shoulders a shove.
Naruto laughed a loud, gruff sound as he nodded, messy blond hair bobbing with the movement. "Hell yes we do! Them Swedes have no idea what happened to 'em. That'll teach them to mess with a good ol' fashioned American boy. Kiba, I'm going home!" he said happily, his whole face alight with excitement. He'd waited so, so long for this.
A laugh that sounded much more like a bark escaped Kiba's throat and he clapped his friend on the shoulder, shaking him a little. "That's m' boy!" he said happily. "Luckiest gamblin' hand on this side of the ocean. Now come on, you Yankee idiot, let's go up on deck!"
Naruto made a face at the dark-haired boy, and they moved up onto the deck, his thick sketchbook tucked under his arm. "I wonder if there'll be any gorgeous lonely women here to keep us company," he said with a wide grin. "I could sure use some new inspiration."
"More balls than brains as usual," Kiba remarked, wolfish grin still firmly in place as they made it on deck, the sunset bathing them in deep orange light. He sighed, the breeze ruffling his coat and nearly blowing his hat off his head as he moved forward, racing his friend toward the stern, where the gulls were flocking over the foaming water. "Ah...look at that will you? Nothing else like it..."
Still grinning brightly, Naruto shrugged off his jacket, tossing it and his sketchbook down, chasing after Kiba, and hopping onto the railing as well, the wind blowing almost painfully at his face, the sensation of being weightless washing over him. "It's perfect!" he called to his friend.
"I'm the king of the world!!"
Kiba laughed merrily, holding his hat firmly on his head as he gazed out at the horizon. He sighed, watching the gulls sail overhead, his eyes following them until they fell upon a lone girl standing on one of the upper level decks. The wind was blowing her dress about, sending black tresses of hair fanning over a perfect, pale face. Even from a distance he could tell she was the prettiest girl he'd ever seen. "Mary mother of god," he breathed. "Would you look at that...?"
Blue eyes followed Kiba's gaze, and Naruto's lips parted as he stepped slowly off the railings. She was easily the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, and even though he couldn't see her eyes, he could just feel it. There was something about her that just seemed so… alone.
"Wow. Yeah, you're not kidding, are you? I wonder if she's alone…"
The Irish boy laughed almost bitterly, leaning back against the railing. "I wouldn't be gettin' any funny ideas," he warned his friend, though he couldn't move his eyes away from the sorrowful beauty that stood so still and alone, like some forgotten piece of art. "You'd sooner be drinkin' sea water than gettin' close to the likes of her."
Shaking his head and frowning, Naruto crossed his arms, watching the beautiful woman carefully. "Don't be stupid, Kiba," he said slowly, almost distractedly. "Titanic is the ship of dreams. That girl… she is my dream."
Sasuke closed his eyes, just breathing in the evening air, relishing in this sweet moment of peace, of solitude. When he opened them, he could see gulls sailing overhead like wisps of cloud, tinged orange by the sunset. Two boys were down below, running about and shouting, and he longed to rip off the evening gown Itachi had picked out for him and join them. He heard the horn blow signaling the start of dinner, and he felt like something was ticking deep inside his heart, a bomb waiting to go off.
The dining hall was spacious and crowded, and Sasuke quickly made his way to the head table, remembering what Itachi had said about dining with the ship's founders that evening. He found his brother and forced a smile, lowering himself into the seat beside him.
Itachi sat beside the architect who had been in charge of the design of the ship, eyeing his brother when the boy sat next to him. "Gentlemen, I'm sure you all remember my fiancée, Sasuke? She's never been on a ship of this magnitude before, so please, forgive her for looking a little wan," he said with the smallest hint of a smirk as every single man at the table rushed to shake their heads, mumbling about how beautiful his brother was.
"It's nice of you to join us," he said a little quieter, leaning in to brush his lips against the younger boy's in greeting. It was just as much for show as it was for his own enjoyment, really.
Something snapped inside Sasuke as he accepted his brother's kiss, suddenly feeling the world slip out from under him. The sounds of clinking china and fake laughter dulled and ran together in his ears, and when he pulled back, he saw nothing but ceramic masks all around, leering at him like clowns in a circus. Every moment the dinner dragged on another thing seemed to break within him.
"You make a fine couple," one of the women was saying to him, and he nodded absently as she went on to praise Itachi for his beautiful little trophy. His perfect little china doll.
Itachi nodded at the praise, a small polite smile playing on his lips. "Thank-you," he said smoothly, holding Sasuke's hand for a moment. "She's completed everything I've wanted for my life, and she's the most beautiful woman I've ever had the pleasure of being with. The perfect wife," he said as he watched the men nod in agreement.
The hand atop Sasuke's felt hot, smothering, and suddenly he couldn't stand to live another moment. "Excuse me," he said as politely as he could, getting to his feet and offering the others a blank smile. "I'm just feeling rather faint." Without another word, he turned his back on the table, feeling their eyes drilling holes through his dress and into his naked flesh, burning him. With clumsy, aimless steps, he stumbled up the stairs toward the deck.
Itachi frowned as he watched his brother run off, shaking his head slowly. "She does that sometimes," he said simply. "She's rather susceptible to illness, and so sometimes she just needs to go," he explained, watching as all of the people at the table nodded and offered him their sympathy. He knew now that they'd admire him for being such a caring man. Everything was slipping so easily into place.
Sasuke's high heels slipped on the slick surface of the deck as he stumbled almost drunkenly forward, blinded by tears, chest heaving with sobs. He continued to run toward the stern, the roar of the propellers growing louder and louder. With a soft cry, he slumped against the railing, sobbing uncontrollably for a few moments before tugging himself up and over the side, heels slipping precariously.
The sea was a black, formless thing below him, churned mercilessly by the propellers, and he stared at it in mute fear and fascination, gripping the railing so hard his hands were numb. All he had to do was let go, and he would be swallowed up by that blackness, never to be found again. All he had to do was let go...
Blue eyes moved from his sketchbook as he heard a loud clacking of shoes against the cool metal of the floor. He'd been sketching for hours and this was the first he'd heard any people about since the dinner bell had rung. He hopped up and glanced down at the deck, frowning a bit. It was that girl from earlier on that day. She was wearing a different dress, and her hair was up tight and proper, only a few tendrils falling around her face, but it was her.
As the girl shifted over the edge of the boat, panic filled Naruto, and he jumped into action, hurrying towards the woman. He wasn't going to let her die!
