Akatsuki belongs to Kishimoto-sensei.

Itachi sighed miserably and threw himself at the dirt while his larger companion pawed at the dark river. They'd been walking for what seemed like forever, but the mountain range he'd been using as a marker wasn't getting any closer. And worse than that, the dreaded headache around his crimson eyes was returning.

He began rubbing his face mercilessly against the unforgiving ground, getting dust and grass in his jet black coat. His gave a rough growl as his eyes started burning from the pupil to the back of his skull. He could trace with a claw all the lines of pain, and with every pulse his vision diminished a little more.

He clawed angrily at his muzzle and rolled wildly about, cursing under his breath while his best friend, often called "brother," watched with sad eyes.

Kisame looked away from the ailing black Wolf. He couldn't help it. That pain hurt more than any wound he'd ever recieved. He bit the inside of his lip a little and slowly moved foreward, leaving trails of cold water in his wake.

His light grey coat had an odd bluish look to it, and his eyes were black. Itachi always told him he had the creepiest smile, but he hadn't been doing a lot of that lately. Smiling, that is.

"Hey, Ita-kun," he offered, stopping a few paces from the dust cloud. His friend appeared not to have heard him. He waited.

Itachi grunted and rolled to one side, ignoring the taller Were's attempts at conversation. Kisame sat down patiently and watched the dirt rise with his occasional breath. The blood-colored eyes were closed, and he seemed almost at peace, but Kisame knew better. Inside he was hurting with an old pain that could not be dampened.

"Kisame." He barely heard the softly spoken word, but quickly turned his attention to Itachi.

"Hai?"

"How old am I?" Kisame smiled, barely showing the stark white canines. Itachi had a tendency to ask random questions like that, especially when he was feeling down.

"No more than fifty, I assure you."

He was met with silence yet again, and wondered faintly if the eighteen-year-old was annoyed with him.

"How long have I known you?" came the next question, almost monotone, so that it sounded more like a statement than someone looking for an answer.

Kisame blinked. "Since pups, Ita-kun."

"Ah." They merely sat in semi-comfortable silence after that. Kisame began to think of the happier parts of puphood, carefully avoiding the physical and emotional abuse they had both recieved. However, he did manage to think of two particular things, much to his chagrin; the long scars on both his cheeks and across his back, and, of course, the horrible things done to his brother's eyes.

The color had been blood-red since then, the fur around them grey as the storming skies. His sight had never been the same.

Kisame shook his head to rid it of the bad things, and stretched. Abruptly, Itachi sat up, startling the grey Were and causing him to stare.

"I'm losing it again, brother," Itachi said in a hushed voice, not looking at anything. Kisame grimaced, but wasn't sure what to do just yet. Itachi didn't move, either.

"I can hardly see." His voice cracked, reflecting the broken soul inside. Kisame gasped quietly and was about to say something when Itachi stood. "We should probably get going..."

"No!" Kisame hadn't meant to shout, but Itachi was pushing himself too far again. He did that a lot, too. Itachi looked at him, and Kisame lowered his voice. "Please...You need to rest, Itachi."

Itachi bowed his head, looking rather ashamed, but silently thanking his only friend. His small body became slightly more human as he dropped to his knees, face in his hands. Kisame rushed to his side.

The younger Were's voice came out muffled and choked with sobs. "I'm scared, Kisame...I'm scared." He sounded so weak then. Kisame awkwardly placed his arms around Itachi's trembling shoulders and murmured words of comfort.

"Don't be scared, Ita-kun."

"I feel so pathetic!" the black cried, burying his face in Kisame's shoulder and clinging to him weakly. "Vulnerable like this...I don't like it." It was even more difficult to hear him then. The grey tilted his head slightly when he noticed his fur become wet.

Itachi was crying. He never cried. This told Kisame just how bad it was.

"Hey, hey," he said softly, causing Itachi to look blearily up at him. "I'm here, okay? I'll take care of you."

The clouded crimson eyes blinked at him, seeming to look straight through his soul. Itachi spoke so quietly it was almost unheard over the wind. "Promise?"

"Promise. Please rest, Itachi." Please...

It was quiet for a moment, aside from Itachi's ragged breathing. Finally, he panted, "If you...stay with me." Please don't ever leave.

"I will."

Pleased with the response, Itachi adjusted his position so that he was sitting on his right hip and leaning against Kisame. The grey gently lay down on the grass and Itachi followed, sprawling slightly on his chest and sighing contentedly.

Kisame laughed. He couldn't help it. That peace was what he waited and worked for. He couldnt stand his friend's pain, and hated to see him upset. But this clam? This happiness? You could say he lived for it.

"Would you stop jerking around, please?"

He gave one last laugh, a softer one, and closed his own eyes, paws wrapped protectively around his brother. They were both sound asleep within minutes.

-cough- Fear it! Um...I dunno. -shifty eyes- ..Dangit, it started to feel sort of empty near the end...; ; This is why I should finish what I start all at once...! -rawrs- Oh well. I suppose it can't b helped now...Ehh. Hope you like it, at least. -bows and creeps off- ... -crawls back- Um, more on their past later, but for now...Go and listen to "In Pieces" by Linkin Park. Written while listening to that, and sort of describes what happened to them...Til next time!!