dedication: TO SARA. BECAUSE SHE'S AMAZING, HAVEN'T YOU NOTICED.
disclaimer: i don't own a lot of things. and "child of my heart" is copyrighted by sara. :D
notes: and i is back. also. i hate chemistry with every fiber of my being. i hate it. if it were human, i'd shred it to pieces. anyway. thank you for the reviews, guys!
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The Mad Hatter glared as The White Queen stared at The Cheshire Cat as if he were a piece of meat; it angered her that this woman-girl was so… so interested in her friend without even knowing him. Did she know that he was a picky eater and did not like bread and butter? Did she know he slept on the highest tree-branch, curled up like a cat?
She knew nothing about The Cheshire Cat and yet she yearned for him as if she did.
"So," she cut in before the woman-girl could go off and annoy her friend, "what do we owe this visit to, M'lady? Is it tax day?"
The Queen's attention switched towards The Hatter and she automatically frowned. "Stop joking or it'll be your head."
"Ah, but see, only The Queen of Hearts has the honor and right to behead us wonderful citizens of the Valley of the End," The Hatter retorted with nonchalance. She was not, and will not be, afraid of The White Queen. No, fear was definitely not what she felt towards the woman-girl.
"RUN, KEEP RUNNING. KEEP RUNNING!"
Blazing hazel eyes studied the woman-girl as said woman-girl studied her. She will admit: The White Queen was very attracting – very beautiful. The kind of beautiful that made you do a double take, made your jaw fall open, made you want to stare on forever. She was gorgeous… The Hatter raised an eyebrow as she watched the ice-blue eyes of The White Queen ignite with fire, her perfectly pouty lips wrinkling with a tight and heavy frown.
"ANKO? ANKO, WHERE ARE YOU?"
She was gorgeous, but she was evil.
Yet, The Hatter did not feel fear towards her. She did not quake at the mere syllable of her name, at the mere sight of her. She did not run and hide. She didn't, because she wasn't afraid. And she didn't want to be afraid of her. She didn't want to befriend her, either.
"ANKO, ANSWER ME…. PLEASE! PLEASE, WHERE ARE YOU?"
All The Mad Hatter wanted from her was revenge.
"ANKO!"
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Always Running
Out of Time
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Sakura was deathly quiet, her back firmly, flatly against the cold glass of the sugar-pot. She trembled, gnawed at her lower lip as she tried to hear anything that was being exchanged from outside.
But everything was silent – Tenten was not mouthing off to… to… Ino? Was it Ino? Was it really her?
Why was she here?
…If this was Ino – her Ino, the Ino she was friends with for so long… the Ino she did not know anything about other than her living alone in that white house… That she left Konoha frequently to visit her parents who, because of work schedules and location, lived out of Konoha.
A newfound anger began to boil deep within her stomach as she realized, up until then, that those words and those "facts" were absurd. Ino was seventeen (right….?) and a minor (right…?) and therefore not allowed to live on her own. Not yet. Why hadn't Sakura realized this sooner?
Something was wrong. Terribly wrong, and Sakura wanted to figure it all out. She wanted answers, and being as intelligent as she knew she was, she knew that no one was going to willingly give her any. So she was going to have to find out herself.
Blinking, she realized that she was about five inches tall…
…She was going to find some answers… when she was back to her normal size.
Right.
"You're losing it, Sakura," she hissed to herself, "You're losing it. You… I actually believe this? I believe in… in… size-changing drinks… in boys with cat ears and cat tails and rat tails and… hyperactive, tea drinking, butter obsessed… I… I believe… I do… Don't I?"
She slumped, one of her shaking hands coming to grab the fabric of her shirt as her attempt to calm her fast-beating heart. Sakura stiffened once she heard the new conversation… a conversation about her.
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"I heard Alice is back in the Valley of The End," The White Queen hissed.
The Mad Hatter narrowed her eyes, ignoring how The Dormouse and The March Hare stiffened and how The Cheshire Cat shoved his hands into the pockets of his slacks, his eyes distant as he stared at one of the many, many trees. The Hatter always took it upon herself to get them all out of the sticky situations they – The Cheshire Cat – got them in; because, though she was not the only brains of the group, she was the one that actually liked to talk. The Cheshire Cat and The Dormouse were more of the… fist-speak-for-me kind of guys. And The March Hare… The March Hare wrecked havoc on anything without him even knowing, or intending to.
"Of course not," she responded lightly. She fingered one of her two pigtails, her other hand coming to rest on her hip, "You took care of Alice yourself, one hundred years ago – just in case you didn't remember, M'lady."
Satisfaction filled her as she watched The Duchess grow stiff, silver eyes widening and darting to The White Queen. But there was no response from her. She looked as icy and heartless as she ever did. The Hatter hated her; she hated her beauty, she hated her coldness, she hated her obsession with her friend, she hated how she hurt so much people without a care in the world.
She hated her because she took Anko away from her.
"That is the past and will stay in the past," The Queen said, "but know this, I will repeat my actions if she is here…" She froze and then gave them all an icy-cold smile, blue eyes glittering with something The Hatter did not like. "Hm. You… wouldn't mind if I," she petted Akamaru's white fur, "let Akamaru sniff around here wouldn't you? Just, you know, to check that my lovely citizens are not lying to me."
The Hatter stiffened and relaxed – all in a blink of an eye. She shrugged, "You're the queen, aren't you? What you say goes, so why ask me?"
The White Queen smirked as she murmured some things to the beast. The Mad Hatter watched with careful eyes as the beast began to near them; The Cheshire Cat finally snapped back to attention, his dark eyes following Akamaru's every move. The Dormouse and The March Hare remained stiffened, their rigidness growing once the beast passed them.
The Hatter acted. She grabbed the sugar-pot in which Alice was stuffed into and, seeming as casual as she could be, she took the small top off and tipped it over her cup of tea. "Ah, you wouldn't mind me sipping on some tea, would you, Your Highness? It is my unbirthday and I'd like to celebrate!"
She inwardly sighed as she heard the small splash of Alice's body falling into the cool liquid of her tea. The White Queen ignored her, instead having her eyes follow her pet as it sniffed and sniffed and sniffed – sometimes even allowing them to slide towards The Cheshire Cat, if just for five seconds.
Whining, Akamaru went back to his perch in between both his masters, his feral snout wrinkled in displeasure at failing his mistress. The White Queen rubbed at his fur again, eyes narrowed.
"So, you speak the truth," she commented lightly, "We'll see for how long, though."
And she turned around and walked back to her carriage. The Duchess hesitated for a second, light eyes staring at the foursome with minor distaste and something else. Shaking her head she turned around and went on her way.
The Mad Hatter watched them go, silently promising revenge.
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Sakura did not know what happened; one minute she was straining – and panicking – to listen to Ino and Tenten talk… and the next, she was dumped into a cup of tea. These people were so rude, she was so soaked and… and… she probably smelled like… lemon, or something. What would Sasuke think… Not that she cared; it's just that… whatever.
She broke the surface of the liquid, flapping her arms and gasping for air. She shook her head, slapping her bangs out of the way. Snapping her green eyes open, she glared at the nearest person – Tenten.
"Excuse me! I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU JUST DID THAT! I'M SO WET NOW – WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO CHANGE INTO? I… I CAN GET SICK OR SOMETHING!"
"Hush now, Sakura," the brunette said, taking a careful grasp of her in between her thumb and pointer finger. "Everything will soon be cleared up."
Sakura blinked her eyes and slapped the lingering tea out of her face. She glared and flapped her tank-top, wringing it so that any excess liquid would drop out; but that left her top all wrinkly and… Sakura was now feeling ugly because, like, seriously – this was her shirt! "I'm expecting to be given extra clothes – and I'd like to go back to my normal size, yeah? I mean, I'm short by default, but this is beyond all that!"
Tenten bit at the inside of her cheek, "Sakura, I'm afraid you can't go back to your normal height. Not for right now, at least."
This brought a heavy unease that Sakura felt deep within her stomach; her arms dropped limply to the side, her face going blank with dread. "Wh-why do you say that? Am I going to die? I'm going to die aren't I? Oh god, this sucks major ass."
Snorting, Tenten rolled her eyes. "No, silly. I just don't have any growing-cookies. And because the White Queen's on the lookout for you… but it's mostly for the first reason."
Sakura managed to let out an indignant gulp. Her green eyes traveled towards Naruto who, still looking absolutely hyperactive, still managed to look worried; his scruffy appearance looked all the more scruffy – his white polo was wrinkled, the neck to it sticking up, sleeves folded to his elbows. The black vest he wore over it was unbuttoned and his black slacks were loose. Sakura, through the new dread she felt, managed to admire his ruffled, wild blond hair.
Shakily, she turned to look at Neji. He was as rigid as a board, his facial expression blank. Neji was very good looking, Sakura decided then. His features were sharp, aristocratic nose, thin lips, gorgeous eyes, silk-looking hair. He was tall, and more well dressed than Naruto; he had a dark gray button up shirt – buttoned up well, sleeves pushed halfway up his forearm. But, unlike Naruto who looked like he was breaking at the seams (by pulling at his ears until Sakura worried they'd come right off) – Neji looked composed… too composed.
And Sasuke? Sasuke looked blank and bored. Out of all of them, he was the one that rarely spoke, rarely moved (his swaying tail and his flapping ears did not count). His black button-up was perfectly clean, as were his black slacks – he always managed to look so poised, so clean, so ready for anything… Sakura admired and loathed it all the same.
Speaking of Sasuke… He plucked her right out of Tenten's grip, lifting her up so that he could get a good view of her. "Tenten," he said, darting his dark eyes towards the brunette, "why don't you make an outfit for her? She's terribly wet."
From this closeness, Sakura could see sparks of red in his dark eyes – they looked so black… so dark and unfathomable and… beautiful, she found herself saying to herself. To find the red sparks in his eyes, you have to look closely… Something that Sasuke didn't seem to allow. Sakura's heart picked up as he placed her on his palm – and then he handed her back to Tenten.
"Once she's dressed again, I'll take her to the Queen of Hearts," he said.
Neji seemed to relax, "She will be safe with Her. Much safer than she is here with us."
Naruto nodded vigorously.
Tenten, though, seemed to narrow her eyes. But she didn't speak; instead, she concentrated in taking her at off and placing Sakura in it. Sakura wasn't able to watch as Tenten whipped up a brown top, cream colored trousers and even a dark belt to go with it. She was handed these materials, putting them on and then looking down at herself with mild curiosity. The top was almost leathery as it stuck to her body, the sleeves loose and long – she managed to pull them up to her elbows. The trousers were stuck to her legs as well, ending just at her ankles. The outfit looked complete as she buckled the belt loosely around her waist – yet it looked ridiculous with her red converses. Sakura sighed and ran her hand through her hair… only to find out that it was limp and sticky and stringy – Sakura cursed loudly.
"Sakura?" Tenten's face appeared over the top of the hat, "I'll just have a word with Sasuke and then I'll get you right out of there."
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"I'll go see the Queen of Hearts."
The Cheshire Cat glared, "Don't be ridiculous – I'll go see Her."
The Hatter shook her head and glared heavily. She turned towards where The Dormouse and The March Hare sat on the elongated table, already sipping on their teas as if nothing happened. Running a hand through her bangs she bit at the inside of her cheek, " I don't want you to burden yourself with everything that is going to happen. Because something is going to happen, there is no doubt in that. So let us help you – we're your friends."
This time, it was him shaking his head. "It's not that, Hatter. I brought Alice here… Alice is here because of me—" for me "—and I'll take care of her. You'll stay here with the Idiot and The Dormouse."
"I can't believe you—"
"You know what could happen if The Dormouse sleeps. And you know if he snaps, The March Hare will too. You'll handle them, and I'll handle this."
She glared all the more. "Why are you always using that excuse? You're so set on not letting us help! Cheshire Cat, if this is because of what happened one hundred years ago – let it go… I don't blame you. I don't resent you, so let me help you!"
"Hatter, please." He ran a hand through his dark hair, his cat-ears twitching in annoyance. "This is just something I have to do. I'm going to talk to the Queen of Hearts, I'll leave Alice there and when I get the confirmation, I'll come back for you guys."
Sighing and slumping her shoulders, she gave a defeated nod. Once The Cheshire Cat's mind was made up, there was no way in changing his decision. She knew that and she hated that fact – but he wouldn't be The Cheshire Cat if he were any other way. Just how he wasn't himself without Alice. She pursed her lips and pouted, "Fine. I trust you."
She rolled her eyes when he patted her head and said, "Good."
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"Where are you taking me," Sakura shouted at Sasuke. She was on his head, her small five-inch-sized hands grabbing on to his cat-ears for dear life as he sped off towards a direction she did not even know about.
His speed was almost inhuman – but what else would she expect? He had a cat-tail and cat-ears! Sakura's hair flew behind her, whipped at her face and mixed with the fur on his ears. She trembled, her teeth chattering against each other; but, she thought, it wasn't because she was afraid (not as much, at least) but more because of the adrenaline and the cold air whipping at her.
"Sasuke—"
"We're going to go see someone," she heard him murmur.
In a way, Sakura thought his tone left no room for discussion or conversation. But then she thought back about the short amount of time she's spent with Sasuke and realized that that was just the way Sasuke's tone was by default. And again, she began to question – how could someone like her have ever loved someone like him? They were completely different – yin and yang. He was dark and mysterious, and aloof and indifferent – she's gone through this… hasn't she?
Growling in deep annoyance with herself, Sakura closed her eyes and just breathed. In and out, in and out, in and out; she was sucked into the motion of Sasuke's legs moving them forwards – his running; his sprinting… it was as if she was flying. She felt high up in the sky as she rode on his head with her eyes closed. She smiled and she was tempted to let go of his ears, but the she'd fly off and who knows what'd happen then.
Slowly, she opened them again and watched as trees upon trees upon trees passed her by – she couldn't even see if they had faces, like the other ones. And soon, the green and brown of the trees were gone and all Sakura could see was dirt and something that reminded her so much of sand-dunes – as if they were crossing a dry, rocky desert. The sky was as clear as anything Sakura had ever seen before; bright, clear blue that reminded her of Ino's eyes and how they'd glitter with all the smiles and laughter they shared.
But then… all those smiles and laughter were fake… weren't they?
Sakura didn't know what to think anymore; the thought of Ino betraying her, breaking their friendship – if it ever was even that – made a choking sadness weigh her down and the sudden need to cry was so damn tempting. But Sakura vowed she wouldn't cry… At least not while she was here, with Sasuke.
"I'll grow back to my normal size, won't I," she asked him, her voice a soft whisper. But he heard her, she knew he did.
"Of course," he said and Sakura allowed herself to pretend his voice was compassionate and caring.
She remained silent for the rest of their travel; she sighed and sighed every single time more dry-rocky-ness passed them by… Until finally green appeared. Green and red. And almost instantly Sakura thought of Christmas. But it wasn't anything remotely similar to Christmas.
They were all rosebushes. Rosebushes with red roses. No other color, just red.
Sasuke's speed slowed, if just a tiny bit; but his slowing down allowed her to catch glimpses of men, dressed in red armor with black numbers on their backs, painting white roses into red. Every rosebush with white roses was being worked on – being painted red. Sakura didn't understand… but she did like red…
"Wh-where are we," she whispered.
Sasuke didn't answer, though.
"Why are they painting the roses red?"
"Because red is Her favorite color."
"Who are they – who is 'She'?"
"Sakura," Sasuke said and she gasped and quickly released his twitching ear. He was annoyed. "Just… be quiet and wait. Everything at its time."
But she abided with remaining silent, allowing the questions to pool up in her head as he led them down a bridge; this…place had a moat. Looking up and away from the crystal-clear river surrounding the place, Sakura's breathing hitched at the sight of the… castle. Sakura's always wanted to see a castle – she didn't even know they existed; all Konoha had were skyscrapers and condos and villas and houses and more of each.
But then again, she was in the Valley of the End – this place was by far different from Konoha. And this castle was gorgeous. It was white and red; white walls, white towers and red roofs and red flags and red accessories. Around the castle was a white gate that stood so tall, Sakura couldn't even think about looking over it. The doors to the gates were white as well and in the center of it was a grand, red heart; a half of the heart on each door that when opened, Sakura guessed, a broken half was on either one.
Sasuke came to a stop right in front of the closed doors and Sakura marveled at the fact that he didn't even seem out of breath. The doors opened a crack and a figure stepped through it; he was dressed in the red armor and as he neared them, Sakura noticed the 7 marked on his cheeks, on his left breast and something told her that – like the others – it was on his back as well. He didn't wear those tin-things on his head, she mused, and she could see his shot of onyx-black hair and his onyx-black eyes and his paper-white skin.
"What do you want," he said and his tone was as emotionless as Sasuke. Actually, Sasuke's sounded livelier next to this guy's. And he was so rude.
She heard Sasuke growl deep within his throat. "I'm here to see the Queen of Hearts."
"Do you have an appointment?"
"You don't need an appointment to see the Queen of Hearts. Stop fucking around."
"Ah, but you need an appointment now. It's a new rule She's come up with and we must abide to it or it's off with our heads."
"Let me through."
The knight tilted his head, his eyes moving away from Sasuke's irritated facial expression to the top of his head. And that's when he saw Sakura, sitting right at the crown of his head a hand holding either of his ears. He raised his eyebrows and stared; she figured that's as much of a shocked face as she was going to get.
"Is that… Sakura?"
"Hn."
"Oh, well then. This changes everything. She always liked Sakura. Come along then." He stiffly turned towards the wall and with his hands crossed behind him, he walked inside. Sasuke followed.
Sakura couldn't help but gasp (the whole thing Seven – as she now called him – said about this queen liking her went right through her) at the sight of what was inside of the large and glorious gates. Everything, as she had seen from a distance, was red and white. And right at the center, there was an enormous heart made out of the walls themselves; it took Sakura several minutes to stop wondering how they got the concrete to bend like that.
She stared in awe as they passed a grand garden – green and red, like Christmas. There weren't men painting the roses red here; they were already red. Seven led them in through some doors, nodding at the two men standing watch on either side of them. Once inside Sakura's attention drifted towards the new color; red, white and black. There were pillars, all in rows, as red as blood with gold trimmings. Chandeliers dangling from high above were gold and the light they gave off was gold; the walls were a dark gray and there were hearts in between and on every glass-stained window.
In short, she decided, the place was beautiful.
"Hn," Sasuke said and she soon realized that she had murmured her thoughts out loud.
Soon, Sakura was able to hear music – loud and… it sounded as if there was a party going on. And as they neared the music only became louder and louder; some sort of pop music without lyrics, just the fast beat that made you want to dance and dance and never stop. Seven knocked on the door once, clear and loud. A second later the door was cracked open and a head popped in; it was another guy, this one with silver-white hair and amethyst eyes and pale skin. He was also dressed in a red armor, but his had no number – not even on his cheeks.
"What," he said.
"The Cheshire Cat is here. And he has brought Sakura along with him."
The other boy's eyes widened and he closed the door for five seconds – Sakura soon heard, over the loud music, a shrilly voice booming, "WHAT? LET THEM IN, YOU IDIOT. LET THEM IN, LET THEM IN!"
The door was opened again and the guy with the gorgeous eyes appeared again and ushered them all in, "Sai, add more force around the castle – one must be cautious now that Sakura is here."
"Yes Captain," Seven – Sai – said. And then he left.
Sakura's eyes darted all over the grand room, the pillars and the chandelier and the glass-stained windows and the hearts – it was all here as well. But there was also a red carpet that led to a throne. And standing in front of the throne was a girl, hands on her hips and head tilted to the side. Sakura gasped at her beauty; she wore a red corset with black lace and a short black-leather skirt… with thigh high black boots. She had a black choker with a medium sized heart made out of rubies. And her hair was a bright crimson-red, and her eyes, behind the black glasses she wore were red as well.
She was gorgeous.
The music was cut off and from a small door, a man appeared. He was dressed in the same crimson armor that all the other soldier-knights had. His, like the guy with purple-eyes, didn't have any numbers. His hair was shaggy and a dark brown and his eyes a dark charcoal. He came to a stop on the left side of the girl while the guy with the purple-eyes took his spot on the right side.
Sakura felt completely intimidated and with the urge to party all at once.
"Sakura!" The woman shrieked, her maroon-lipstick-colored lips breaking into a wide grin. And then she blinked and scanned Sasuke, "Sasuke… Where is Sak—oh! There she is!"
She ran down the four steps that leveled her throne high (to look down at her subjects, Sakura supposed) and ran until she was right in front of Sasuke. With a smirk, she raised her hands and moved Sasuke's unruly hair out of the way and then gently grabbed Sakura. She brought her up to her face and giggled, "Sakura! Oh god, it's been so long!"
Sasuke kneeled for a second before he was back to his full height, "The White Queen is suspicious."
Sakura stared at the Queen of Heart's (…this was her… right?) expression froze a millisecond before going back to smiling-smirking, "Oh. Well, then. That matters not!" She twirled around him and began to walk-glide-dance (it was hard to differ what she was doing – she was so graceful and… Sakura was now jealous) towards the door she and Sasuke had just entered. "I will be back soon; I'll give Sakura one of my growing-cookies… And change her out of these horrid clothing! Kiba, Suigetsu, keep the Cheshire Cat company while I bring back his woman all better dressed… and more of his height."
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Sakura watched, sitting Indian style on a counter, as the Queen of Hearts twirled around the kitchen and towards the far counter on the other side of the kitchen. She opened a jar and stuck a dainty hand inside; what she took out looked like a nice sugar-cookie that Sakura wouldn't have mind eating. She watched as The Queen twirled back towards her, handing her the cookie and then clapping her hands together.
She stared at it, reading the frosted letters that read "Eat Me" and then she shrugged and took a bite. And then the tingling feeling going through her body was back and Sakura gasped as her limbs grew and she was back to her normal height. She jumped off the counter and, to her dismay, she was shorter than the Queen.
The Queen gasped, "Oh!"
"What? Is something—"
"It's as bad as I thought! Come now, Sakura, we must get you out of those clothes!"
Sakura blinked as her arm was seized and she was dragged out of the kitchen and towards a long hall and into a room. Soon, she realized that the room wasn't a room per say, but a closet filled with clothes. "U-um.. Your High—"
"Karin!" The girl corrected. "Call me Karin. We're friends, Sakura," she paused and pursed her lips, "Well… The Sakura from one hundred years ago was my friend. But you and I… We're gonna connect faster than connect the dots!"
She appeared out of one of the many doors that she had stepped into while she spoke, a pair of… something that Sakura could not really differ in her hands. Karin stepped closer to her and handed her the garment and as Sakura took it, her eyes widened as she realized that it was leather. Black leather.
"Put these on, Child of my Heart," she said as she went off to another door.
Sakura unfolded the thing and blushed at… They were black leather booty shorts. "Um… Can I have something a little—"
"Nonsense! Put them on!"
Reluctantly, Sakura disposed of her converses and of the cream colored trousers she was sporting and slid the tiny shorts on. She was in the process of retying the laces of her converses when Karin appeared a purple corset with black edges and she was glad to see that she had brought a black tanktop. "Here," she said, "Put the tanktop on and then I'll help you with the corset."
Sakura obliged and turned around once the corset was around her body. She blinked and huffed and blinked as Karin tied the strings from behind and couldn't help but let a sigh of relief escape her when she was finished. When she turned around, she stared at Karin as the latter scrutinized what Sakura thought was her latest masterpiece.
"Oh, Heavens, no," Karin shook her head, pushing her glasses back up her dainty nose and swatting her crimson hair out of her face, "Those… those things," she pointed at Sakura's shoes, "have got to go."
She turned around and entered another door; Sakura hoped she didn't come with another pair of thigh-high boots that'd match the ones she was wearing herself. What she did appear with, though, was a pair of black combat boots and stockings-socks-thing that, Sakura estimated, reached just above her knees – a purple one, and a black one. She wordlessly handed them to Sakura and, sighing, the shorter girl kicked her converses and her white socks off and put on what she was given. She was right, the stocking-socks-thing reached just above her knees, and the combat boots, once tied, boosted her height by an inch or two.
Karin nodded in approval, her hands on her hips. "Whoa, eat your Heart out Cheshire Cat – you won't know what hit you! You look amazing, Love." But then her attention went to Sakura's stringy, limp pink hair and she almost shrieked in horror. "What happened to you? Come, come, come. We have to clean you up!"
And the next thing Sakura knew, her head was being dunked on a tub, washed with shampoo that smelled divine and a conditioner that Sakura assumed would leave her hair silky. Karin soon towel dried the drenched pink locks before blow drying it and brushing it until it fell straight down over Sakura's shoulders.
"There! Now you look amazing. Let's go see the Cheshire Cat get a heart attack."
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When they reentered the hall that Sakura and Sasuke had first stepped into, she noticed that the two knights and Sasuke were silently talking. They immediately stopped once the two girls' presence was known and Sakura's cheeks heated up when Suigetsu and Kiba began to whistle and run their eyes up and down their body.
Her blush only increased when she watched Sasuke turn to glare at them before he turned to stare at her again; if she was close enough, she would have heard his gulp, but all she saw was his cat-ears twitching in annoyance and his cat-tail swaying around. And maybe a faint pink on his cheeks.
"Doesn't she look marvelous? I'd eat her right up, if I could." Karin giggled. Her red eyes turned to Sasuke, "So… what is going on, Cheshire Cat?"
"The usual, M'lady."
"Ah, the usual as in: The White Queen is still after your tail in her attempts of keeping you as her pet." She nodded her head, her maroon-colored lips pursing, "Well. It's clear that she cannot know that Sakura is back in the Valley of The End. We do not want a repeat of one hundred years ago." And we don't want to see you go through it all over again, either.
Sasuke gave a solid nod, his spine going stiff as Sakura came to stand next to him. At the moment, Sakura was only comfortable around Sasuke, only trusted him – regardless that Karin seemed like a person Sakura would like a lot. Trust and comfort came in time, right?
"Sakura will stay with me here for now," Karin said, one of her hands at her hips while the other one twirled a lock of her red hair. "I will make sure she is safe. And Suigetsu and Kiba will protect her with their lives, isn't that right boys?"
"Yes, M'lady," Kiba said, a wolfish smile on his lips.
Suigetsu smirked as he gave a solid nod and, "Yes, Your Highness."
"Thank you," Sasuke said and listened closely as Karin instructed him on which room he was to take Sakura. Giving a curt nod, he took Sakura's wrist in his hand and led her towards what Sakura was positive was her new room.
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"You'll stay with me, won't you," Sakura said. She hated the whine she heard in her tone and the nervousness she felt deep in her stomach. She sat on her new bed (crimson-red and heart-shaped) as she watched Sasuke lean against the edge of the window, hands in his pockets and his back to her as he stared out the window.
He turned to stare at her, "Soon, I will."
"You're leaving," she asked, her breathing and her heartbeat picking up. And she decided that this was absolutely ridiculous.
Sasuke gave a soft nod, "For now. I have to go back for Tenten and the others."
"Sasuke—"
She gasped when he disappeared and reappeared right in front of her. She looked up at him and she swallowed another gasp as he bent forwards and brushed his lips against hers. She didn't know whether to be angry with herself for wanting more or to swoon at the fact that he kissed her. Again.
"I'll be back, Sakura."
And he dematerialized, and left.
And Sakura was alone in the room.
.
.
.
in other news, i dislike people that ask to borrow people's plot. they annoy the muffins out of me. just thought i'd let that out. and now i'm going to go write some emo poetry for my english class. (AND KARIN IS MY NEW FAVORITE, SHIT-TALK ABOUT HER AND I'LL PIMP SLAP YOU.)
review! :D
