La Verità Dolce
Sonnie
-O-
"Are you listening to me?"
Tenten's head jerked up in surprise.
"Did I perhaps make a mistake in taking you on as an apprentice?" Shikamaru's irritation was completely deflated by her answer.
"I'm sorry, it's just that I've never been inside a house more than one story high. You have a beautiful home, Mr. Nara."
Such an honest compliment caught him off-guard; his home was nice but modest, in his opinion. He wasn't an ostentatious person and hoped he didn't come off that way.
"Thank you, Tenten." To veer away from his discomfort, he changed the subject to something more practical. "We should think of a new name for you."
"What's wrong with Tenten?" she asked. "It's not particularly feminine, nor would anyone recognize it. Any records of my name or birth were lost when I was seven; a fire destroyed most of the city's documents. The only people that would care are my father's creditors, and I doubt they would come all the way from Naples for the paltry amount that I owe them."
"Then why run away to Rome?"
"Well, if I would have stayed they would have thrown me into jail or worse. Besides, there's more work in Rome," with this, she smiled at him, causing him to scowl. "Thanks again."
"Don't mention it. Literally."
Tenten smiled. "Can I see your studio next?"
Shikamaru nodded. As he headed down the hall, he stopped suddenly at the approach of a woman Tenten could call nothing short of beautiful. She had the long, straight blonde hair Tenten had always envied as a child; she was a princess straight from a fairytale. Ivory skin, cool blue eyes, gently flushed cheeks and a rosebud mouth…it was like looking at an expensive porcelain doll.
Tenten realized she was staring and averted her eyes. It had to be Nara Shikamaru's wife, Ino, immaculately dressed, even on a Wednesday morning at home. She was on the skinny side, but Tenten decided that she was the right size for the artist, as he was rather thin himself.
"Hello, Lady Nara," Tenten stopped herself before she curtsied, bowing low instead. This seemed to please Ino immensely.
"This is your newest student?" she asked her husband, eyes raking appraisingly over the apprentice.
Tenten felt herself under intense physical scrutiny, praying that Nara Ino could not see through her hat, tunic, and breeches, the latter which she had chosen to wear long after deciding that her calves looked suspiciously feminine, especially when tightly encased in hose. But instead of the violent realization she was expecting on Ino's part, the woman was mainly focused on what she felt to be her rather unremarkable face.
"He's got such dark, stunning eyes," Ino commented absently. A mischievous look spread across her features as she approached her husband. "They're very intense, just like yours, Shikamaru."
Instead of grinning back at her, he shrugged absently, batting her hands away tiredly. Tenten saw Ino's smile falter just a bit and in that instant, she pitied her. Everything he had told her about this woman started to make horrible, painful sense. Her revered painter suddenly became very human; it was not a pleasant feeling, not something she wanted to confront right now.
"Lady Nara, I hope I can be of some help to you and your husband," Tenten said truthfully. "I know I'm being apprenticed as an artist, but my father was a blacksmith so I'm not only knowledgeable in that area, but I'm excellent with horses."
"Then you will be able to make up for the fact that you're basically living here for free?" Ino's icy tone was a stark contrast to what it was only moments before. It surprised Tenten, the spite that had seeped into her voice.
"Yes, of course," Tenten managed to get out, not sure if she should be offended or not. She did have a point.
"Good, it's assuring to know that at least one man staying in this house isn't completely useless," she muttered quietly, brushing past both Tenten and Shikamaru like a wraith. Before completely vanishing from the hall, she turned suddenly and extended a piece of paper to Tenten.
"I was going to ask Shikamaru to do this, but he always takes so long," Ino began, not caring that he could hear every word she said. "This is a list of items I need from town. One of my maids has a cold and I want you to make some medicine for her after you get back—"
"Ino, can't you get another maid to do this? It's his first day here and I'm trying to show him around the house."
"This is my house, too. Whose rich father paid for it?"
Tenten froze. She had never suspected such animosity between Shikamaru and his wife. She plucked the paper from Ino's tightly-clenched hand before walking right between them. They both blinked, backing up as if they'd just been roused from a daydream. They'd completely forgotten about her in those few seconds.
"Lady Nara, I'm not too familiar with the city, but I can certainly try my best to find everything on the list," Tenten said quickly. "I'll be back as soon as I can, Mr. Nara."
Shikamaru held his wife's gaze for a second before tearing his away abruptly. "Very well, Tenten."
"I expect the errand to take no more than a few hours at the very worst," Ino said calmly, handing Tenten a small velvet bag of money.
Tenten nodded, taking the stairs down to the ground floor. Both Ino and her husband watched her retreating figure as she crossed the lawn to the front gate. Before the metal door had swung shut, Shikamaru turned on her angrily.
"Submitting your servants to this is entirely different than inflicting this upon my students," he hissed. "Stay away from Tenten. He's not any of your concern and he has done nothing to deserve being 'tested' like this. It'd take one of your maids all day to find whatever the hell it was you put on that list, I bet."
Ino crossed her arms over her chest defiantly and Shikamaru rolled his eyes. This angered her even more, but instead of saying anything, she turned on her heel abruptly and left him alone in the hall. The slamming door was about as polite as any parting words she'd had for him in the past year.
Shikamaru sighed. He missed how it used to be between them. It had been like a dream; a beautiful, rich woman had fallen in love with him just as he was starting out as a painter. She was incredible…no other woman was like her and he fell hard. Before he knew it, he had proposed and she accepted.
And while he didn't hate her, didn't even dislike her, really, he found himself becoming more and more alienated from her as the weeks wore on. She was always asking him to do things; wasn't that why they had servants? She always pestered him when he wanted to be alone and it was frustrating, especially when he had strict deadlines to abide by.
Women. Shikamaru rolled his eyes before heading back to his studio. There was always more work to be done.
-O-
Tenten realized she should have looked more carefully at the list before accepting the errand halfway between her third and forth steps after leaving the front gate. She squeezed the paper in her fist and carried the money pouch in the other.
No wonder this little bag weighs so much, Lady Ino wants me to buy supplies for an army Tenten thought dismally. There were all kinds of items present on the list; thread, rope, horseshoes (Tenten scowled, as this probably wouldn't be on the list of Shikamaru weren't so neglectful of the horses), food, and what looked to be more than a dozen items from the apothecary.
How am I going to carry all of this? Tenten thought helplessly, turning around and glancing back at the house for a moment. Her shoulders fell when she realized her pride wouldn't let her return for a basket or cart, not after her confident exit. She sighed heavily, turning around and nearly knocking over a girl her age.
"Oof!"
Tenten bent to help, wincing when her hand fastened around a too-thin wrist and pulled her up with little exertion on her part. She hardly weighed a hundred pounds. Her dark hair was dull and her dress even more faded, but her eyes were still bright as she stammered an apology.
"No, I'm sorry, it's my fault, I'm not paying attention, Miss, and—"
"Miss?" Tenten froze. The girl had seen through her disguise?
The girl was getting very flustered; Tenten suspected she was ill. She glanced up hesitantly. "Beg your pardon for mistaking you for a woman, but please don't take offense when I say that you have the facial features of one. I mean, I only saw you for a brief instant but I could have sworn you were a girl."
Tenten started and the woman took it as insult.
"I'm so sorry, I don't know what I was—"
"No, think nothing of it," Tenten assured her quickly, wanting very much to change the subject. "Are you alright? You took that fall a bit harder than most."
"Oh, I…I wish there were some way to make it up to you."
"What, bumping into me? No, it was my fault."
"I meant mistaking you for a woman."
Oh. That.
Tenten was wracking her brain, hoping for an appropriate response. She couldn't very well tell her the truth, but since she seemed so guilty about the whole thing…
"You can accompany me on my shopping trip and help me carry things, if you're not too busy for the rest of the day."
She nodded. "That's acceptable. Truthfully, I don't have anything to do. I'm new to Rome."
Tenten smiled. "Me too. My name is Tenten."
The girl took the offered hand and shook it. "My name is Rock Jou. I'm here looking for my brother, Lee. Why are you in Rome?"
Tenten shrugged before a grin overtook her features. "I'm starting over, one could say."
Jou nodded. "I know what you mean."
"Are you sure you're alright?" Tenten asked her. "You look a little worn out. Do you want something to eat?"
Tenten caught the tiny gleam of hope in the girl's eyes when she mentioned food, but it died quickly.
"I don't want to impose…"
"I'm offering," Tenten said. "My master gives me a small stipend, and to be quite honest with you in return, it looks like you could use some food. You're awfully thin. When I first saw you, I thought you were ill. You don't have the plague, do you?"
Jou's jaw dropped and Tenten laughed. "I may not be much to look at right now but I assure you I'm not afflicted with the plague."
"It was a jest, though I'm quite serious about you needing something to eat. Then you can tell me all about how you ended up here, Miss Jou."
Jou nodded slowly, smiling shyly. Suddenly, Tenten found her dark eyes locking with hers.
"Okay, but you have to return the favor, Mr. Tenten."