Konoha-Suna Union High School

AU: Itachi-OC and Sasori-OC

Chapter 7: Among the Rain and Snow

Sasori stood tense and silent. He obviously didn't think this through. His grandmother should have known better than to set him out on such a task. For the twentieth time he looked down at the paper he held tightly in his left hand, hoping the answer he needed would suddenly appear.

The question to the unknown answer sounded simple by itself. "Which one?" he muttered as he stared helplessly at the shelves of bread before him in the grocery store. He looked down at the paper, a simple grocery list, and he was still stuck on finding the first item. Bread. How descriptive. He didn't recognize any of the bagged loaves in front on him as the ones his grandma usually gets. Of course, there must have been a hundred to choose from and he could have easily missed it so he kept checking, again and again.

Sasori watched as other shoppers came and went and easily picked out what they wanted. It wasn't long before he started getting irritated and then angry. To make matters worse, some brat ran into him and fell down. His first reaction was to glare sinisterly at the kid, who instantly ran back to his mother. Sasori didn't mean to glare, he hardly budged at all when the kid collided with his legs, so it's not like it hurt, but if it teaches the kid to not run around the store like a brat, then some good came out of it. He lost his cool for a minute, but now he was back.

He looked at the list, and just about snapped again.

"Why are you everywhere I go?" someone asked nearby.

Sasori halted when he was just getting ready to throw the shopping basket against the floor and looked over to see Raven looking at him amused. "Me? How is it you're everywhere I go?" he retorted, though now he found his calm again.

Raven simply shrugged. "Small towns," she answered. "Or maybe you're a stalker," she smirked before beginning to walk away.

"I am not a stalker," he said as he began to follow after her.

She stopped and faced him again, "Then why are you following me?" she asked and watched as he got flustered and couldn't put together a logical answer.

"We were talking! I wasn't following you like that," he pouted.

She laughed, "I know," she said and turned back to the bread and quickly scanned the shelf she stopped in front of before taking a loaf and placing it in her basket. Then she looked back at him since he was staring. "What?"

"How did you do that?" he asked.

"Uh, what?"

Sasori shook his head, realizing how stupid he was appearing. Of course she would know what to buy if she does all her own shopping. "I don't know what to get…" he admitted.

She blinked. "Isn't that a list in your hand?"

Sasori blushed embarrassed. "Well, yeah, but it's not very helpful," he said as he looked at the paper once again.

"If you stare at it long enough, it will tell you more," she said sarcastically and he looked at her annoyed. She sighed, "Well… good luck," she said and began to walk away again.

Sasori sighed to himself. He should have asked her for help, though how could she help? It's not like she would know what his grandmother would buy either. Deciding to just gamble on it, he took a loaf of the same bread she just got. There, done, take that. Finally, one thing off the list. So what's next?

Milk. He could do that, no problem. Sasori went over to the refrigerator section and walked until he found the milk. There was like seven different glass doors that had nothing but different kinds of milk behind them. One percent, two percent, whole, vitamin D, extra pasteurized, lactose free, organic, skim, fat free, protein-enriched, raw, soy, almond, rice, and coconut milk. And then he realized there was also different brands for several types of milk.

What the? His head was spinning. He didn't even know what all of those were. Wasn't all milk the same? What the hell was this rice stuff? And just like that, he was back to his staring contest with the list.

"You're stuck again, aren't you?" Raven said from nearby again. He didn't say anything and just looked at her with pleading eyes. He really didn't want to repeat the bread incident. "Do you need help?" she offered.

He nodded and blushed. This was so embarrassing.

"First, what kind of container are you looking for? Find that section," she instructed. She could tell that he was just overwhelmed and needed a little guidance to figure this out. "Okay good, now just the color of the lid," she said and he cautiously picked out a container of milk and looked at it, trying to remember if it was what was almost empty at home. Cautiously, he placed it in the basket and walked to Raven. She nodded and started on her way now that she was done here.

"Wait," he stopped her. "There's a few more things on the list," he said and held it up.

Raven sighed. "You need help with those too?"

He nodded again and she sighed as she held out her hand for the list. Wordlessly, she went towards the next item on the list. Rice. That was a little easier, since he knew what kind to get from memory, he just didn't know what size package. She told him to get the one he that would fit with the other items so he could carry it home easily. So he got a smaller package.

Sasori continued to follow her around as she got her stuff and helped him find the last couple things from his list before heading to the checkout. He got in line behind her and they set their baskets on the belt with a divider between them. She barely let go of the divider when he pulled her into a tight hug. She wasn't facing towards or away from him, so it left her in a rather awkward position that she couldn't exactly do anything in but wait until he let go.

"If it wasn't for you I'd still be standing by the bread," he chuckled by her ear before letting go.

"Well, you're welcome I guess," she said with a faint blush. She wasn't one for public displays of anything so she was a little embarrassed. They both blushed when the lady in line behind them commented to the person she was with about how cute young couples were when they first get married. They really hoped the lady was talking about something unrelated to them.

After checking out, he hurried to catch up with her outside. She wasn't far since was waiting for him. "So when are you leaving for the holiday?" he asked her.

"In a few days now," she answered.

"Oh," he said and stepped over a puddle on the ground. Not that it mattered much since he was wearing boots, he just didn't want to be kicking up water and make noise or even splash Raven. It had been raining a lot lately, so there were lots of puddles to dodge. It wasn't raining today, but it was still quite cold. So cold that he could see his breath. He had even zipped up his jacket all the way to the top at his chin.

"I have to start preparing for my trip today," Raven added.

"Yeah," he said. He hasn't hung out with her since break started and he was hoping to do it again before she left for the holiday, but if she was going to be busy, he can wait until she returns. Sasori just thought of something he needed to do soon, and realized that he would have to get home quickly. "I'm going to hurry home, I'll see you later!" he waved.

"Bye," she waved before he started off.

The next day Itachi had called up Suki suddenly and asked to meet her at the holiday shopping center that was put up at the park for the holiday gift shopping. There was a lot of unique stuff there and many venders.

Suki had been delighted to do something with him since he had been busy for most of the past several days and she mostly only got to talk to him on the phone in the late evening. She thought this trip was a great idea since she had been having troubles thinking of gifts for her friends.

Both dressed in toasty winter attire, Itachi treated them to some hot tea to walk around with as they browsed and talked. Every so often, they would see something interesting and stop to look at it. They even considered buying a few things, but walked away each time so far. Many of the snacks were much more interesting. They even saw Tobi working at a cart selling ninja masks and masquerade glasses.

Tobi saw them too. "Hiya!" he called out to them as they approached.

"Hi Tobi, what's up?" Suki asked. She actually liked Tobi so she didn't mind stopping to talk to him.

"Tobi likes this one!" he said and put on an orange spiral mask. "So Owner said I can have it if I work the cart today!"

"Can you see with only one eye hole?" Suki asked.

"Tobi can see Suki," he nodded.

"Just be careful and don't run into anything," Itachi said.

"Yes sir!" Tobi saluted.

Soon they stopped at a booth that had hats of all types and colors. Itachi was looking at one thinking what it might like look like on his brother when Suki picked up something. "What do you think of this one, Itachi?" she asked and held up a pink floppy summer hat.

Itachi chuckled as she posed. "It suits you, matches," he said. She smiled and put it back so she could look at some others.

"So what are you going to look for?" Suki asked at another booth they stopped to look at.

"Something for my brother, I thought about eye liner, but decided against it to not encourage his emo tendencies," he joked.

"What does he like?"

"Nothing really," Itachi sighed. "I'm sure I'll figure out something if I keep walking around, if nothing then money is a good gift too."

"He probably wouldn't mind that," Suki nodded.

"Better than getting something he won't like," he added.

A little later they stopped someplace to eat. There were many options to choose from, but they got freshly grilled teriyaki chicken kabobs. The steam warmed their faces as they ate them, only for the moisture to get cold again, but the cooked protein would certainly do them go with such cold weather.

"I wonder if it'll snow this year?" Suki wondered aloud when they started looking around again.

"It might, it's sure cold enough," Itachi said. "I think it will," he added with a charming smiled that made her blush. "Do you like the snow?" he asked as he looked up at the cloudy sky.

She looked up too. "Of course!" she giggled.

Soon they each found some things that would make nice gifts before they decided to head out. Itachi intended on walking her home since it was only a little out of the way.

"Do you still think you can come visit me on the holiday?" Itachi asked.

"Pretty sure," Suki said. "Since I'll be seeing you that day, you have to wait until then to get your gift," she added.

"I think I can handle that," Itachi laughed.

As they reached her apartment, Raven was just leaving hers. "Hey guys," Raven greeted as she passed them on the walkway to the road.

"I got your gift today!" Suki said to her.

"I look forward to it," Raven said. "See you later," she waved before running off.

"Yesterday she mentioned that was going to get something nice for Sasori," Suki giggled as she stepped up to her door, "I think she likes him as much as he likes her," she added.

Itachi was only mildly surprised. "Interesting, I hope it works out between them, maybe when they're together Sasori won't be as awkward about his feelings," he sighed. "For how much he talks about her and then acts around her, it's kind of obvious to the rest of us."

"Yeah, Raven doesn't talk as much about him, but her actions say a lot," Suki nodded. "Do you want to come in for awhile?" she offered.

Itachi shook his head, "No thank you, I should head back as soon as I can," he said and then leaned down to peck her cheek as he wrapped his free arm that wasn't holding his purchases around her in a quick hug. "See ya," he waved as he stepped away to leave.

"Bye-bye," she waved before going inside.

The next day Sasori was locked up inside his room, despite his great uncle being there to visit. Chiyo wondered what he was doing, but didn't press the matter since this wasn't the first time Sasori had done this. When the muse hits him, it tends to attack his mind in a storm and he'll work for hours on end without realizing that he hasn't eaten all day. Knowing this, she made sure that he at least got dinner by reminding him when she was about to make, when it was ready, and then only waiting five minutes before telling him again, He would always come out by then, though he would curse the interruption and his humanly needs of enough food and sleep to function.

Itachi took his brother shopping that day, so they could find something nice for their parents together. Sasuke even got a few small things so he could give them to his teammates. Itachi was relieved to know that the kid was actually bonding with his friends a little and not isolating himself. Itachi knew how much that could suck, though his reasons for being isolated from people his age were not makings of his own choices.

Raven and Suki hung out for a good portion of the day. Then Raven had to finish packing for her leave the next day, and Suki had to clean her apartment for the visitors she'd be expecting soon. That included making sure her laundry was done and put away, the floors near spotless, everything dusted, and remembering to make a quick trip the store soon to make sure she would have snacks and drinks to offer. Wanting her apartment to look extra nice, she had put up some holiday decorations, including a small decorated tree in the living area.

That night everyone went to bed at different hours of the night, but each fell asleep to the sound of rain. As soon as the sun set it started raining and it only grew heavier as each hour passed. Sasori was last to sleep, setting his alarm for early in the morning. He was determined to finish as soon as possible. From his bed he pulled back the curtain of his window to look outside. It was black, he couldn't see anything, but he could hear how heavy the rain was and hoped it would let up by morning. Letting the curtain fall back over the window, he ran his hand through his dirty hair before laying down and pulling the covers over him. It was going to be a cold night.

The next morning Raven had to leave somewhat early to catch the train heading north. The train station wasn't too far away, though it was quite a walk, especially in the heavy rain that never let up from the night before. It was hard to tell that the sun was even on the other side of the clouds. The grayness of the sky was gloomy and made it hard to tell that it was in fact nine in the morning already. She walked with a backpack over her shoulders, a suitcase in one hand, and an umbrella in the other. Good thing it wasn't windy, otherwise the umbrella would be useless and she would be soaked already.

Before the train station, there was one stop she had to make first. Stepping up to Sasori's doorstep, she knocked on the door and waited only a couple second before Chiyo answered the door.

"Hello, is Sasori here?" Raven asked politely, though her face void of any visible emotion.

"He is, but he's busy, what can I do for you instead? Do you need to come inside and wait for him?" she offered.

"No thank you, but could you give him this envelop please? He promised he would take care of something while I am away and this has the instructions he wanted," Raven said and offered the envelop.

"Can do," Chiyo obliged.

"Thank you very much," Raven bowed. "Happy holidays," she said as she lifted the umbrella again and continued on her way.

Chiyo inspected the envelop closely before sighing as she decided Sasori would be angry if she opened it to see what was inside. Heading down the hall to Sasori's room she had to knock on his door several times before he cracked the door open.

"What is it?" he asked bored.

Chiyo held up the envelop for him to see. "A young lady was just here and wanted you to have this," she said and watched as his visible eye widened through the crack of the door before he jumped out and snatched the envelop and quickly opened it.

It had a single paper and a key. "Is she still here?" Sasori asked hurriedly as he tried to look down the hallway, hoping she would be in the next room.

"No, she had to be on her way."

"Why didn't you call for me!" Sasori started before running back into his room. "Crap, now I have to go to the train station, I better not be too late!"

Chiyo was both worried and amused. "You never listen to my calls when you're busy," she reminded. Sasori just growled in irritation. He grabbed his jacket and the handles of a small paper bag and was already in going down the hall when his grandmother stopped him. "You're going out like that? You should at least take a quick shower and put on some clean clothes, you've been wearing those sweatpants for the last two days, not only do they probably smell but you'll get soaked to the bone if you go out wearing those."

"What does it matter what I look and smell like if it's still raining like that!" Sasori glared.

"If you move fast you'll still get there in time," Chiyo said, "I am not letting my grandson leave the house like this."

Sasori growled in irritation again and ran back into his room to deposit his jacket and bag on his bed before grabbing his towel and quickly heading to the bathroom as he pulled up his shirt over his head. Only a couple seconds after the bathroom door slammed shut, the shower started running.

Raven was finally waiting for the train in the area by the tracks at the station that had several benches under a cover to protect them from the weather. Only about five more minutes until the train's scheduled arrival. Even with such a short time to wait, she put her things down on the bench next to her and left the umbrella leaning against the seat so she could sit. She yawned, tired. Maybe she could sleep on the train if she wasn't paranoid about missing her stop or having her things stolen. Then she looked down both directions of the tracks to see if she could see the train coming, but couldn't see far due to the still heavy rain and the fog that accompanied it. Oh well.

Sasori decided to forget the umbrella. It would only slow him down and he didn't have much time by the time he finally left. Not to mention that his hair was already wet from his shower, so he didn't really care about it. It was mildly irritating that he had to shower, dry himself off to get dressed, only to end up soaked again when he went outside. When he got the train station, he spotted Raven in almost no time. He could recognize her anywhere now.

"Raven!" he called out as he approached her.

She looked over at the source of the call, and was surprised to see Sasori waving to her. Quickly standing, she stepped out into the rain to meet him. "What are you doing here?" she asked. "You're soaked," she added.

He scratched the back of his head nervously, fingers running through soaked hair, "I just wanted to give you this before you left," he said and offered her the bag. He had put it inside his jacket to keep it dry as he ran.

"Oh, you didn't have to do this now, I was going to be back right after the holiday silly," she smiled as she accepted the gift. She made sure to hold it close with both arms to keep it as dry as possible, not minding that she was getting wet standing with him in the rain. Water is her element after all.

"I know, but it would mean more to me if you got it for the holiday itself," he said.

"Thank you," she nodded. "Unfortunately, I don't have your gift with me, so you'll have to wait until I get back."

He laughed softly at that. "I'm sure I can handle waiting for that, but this, on the other hand, I couldn't wait any longer." With that he took both sides of her face and neck as he leaned in to kiss her. Raven was so surprised by this move that she had to keep herself from backing away reflexively. In fact, he was also shocked that he went ahead and actually did it.

It was brief, but held a lot of meaning. When he parted he still held onto her, smiling as he looked at her blushed cheeks and her surprised doe eyes. She blinked the shock away and they looked at each other wordlessly as the train came to a stop at the station. He brushed his lips against hers quickly once again, and this time she didn't tense up.

"I'll see you when you get back," he said before stepping away.

"…Yeah," she said before thinking of something. "Wait," she called to him a few second later and ran catch up with him. "Sasori, take this," she said and offered him her red umbrella. "You'll need it more than I will," she said.

He chuckled but nodded as he accepted it from her. "Hurry up, or you'll miss the train," he waved. She waved back as she went back to grab her things and boarded the train.

As Sasori walked away, he opened the umbrella, now that he can take his time as he walked home. The entire way he had a smile on his face that he had to force off before stepping in through his front door. He hung up the umbrella and sneezed as he went back to his room.

Raven was looking out the window of her seat on the train. The rain and fog was actually quite relaxing and her mind was replaying the events at the station again and again. Seemed the shock still didn't wear off as quickly as she hoped. Though now she knows how he feels for her. Actions often say much more than words ever can, and much more clearly. There was no denying what he said through everything he just did. The thought made her blush again. She looked down at the paper sack sitting on her lap and lifted it up to see what was inside. The item was wrapped in gift wrap so she decided to wait until later to open it.

When the holiday finally arrived, Suki had got dressed in some of her nicest winter clothes to wear to Itachi's house, the outfit consisted of a purple sweater with a low, wide neckline and a pair of nice gray pants. She spent a lot of time on her hair, insuring it would remain perfect throughout the visit. After she did her makeup and nails, she put on a pair of little pink star earrings and a pink heart necklace.

Suki had looked out the window that morning when she got up and saw that it snowed overnight and now there was just enough fresh snow to cover everything in pure white. She took that as a wonderfully good omen that today was going to be great.

When it was time to visit Itachi, she put on her nice long black coat with a hot pink lining inside and trim, which she had to put money aside for two years before she was able to get. What better time to show it off than at her boyfriend's parents? And after she put on her white scarf and matching gloves, she picked up her purse and hung it from her shoulder and carried a gift bag from her elbow.

As Suki stepped outside, she confirmed how chilly it was. Just when she arrived at the Uchiha gates, it began to lightly snow again.

" Twenty one… twenty two… twenty three, this must be it," Suki said as she approached the large house.

Before she knocked on the door, it opened and she was greeted by a handsome Itachi with a quick hug. "Hey you're just in time, my father went to bed already, so he'll be up for dinner, but my mom is in the kitchen," he said and pulled her inside. He was wearing a dark red sweater with a high neck and some nice black pants.

"Went to bed?" Suki repeated as Itachi removed her coat, the scarf going with it.

"Yeah, he has night shift tonight to be ready for," Itachi said and she nodded in understanding before taking off her boots and leaving them by the other shoes in the entry way.

"It that Suki, Itachi?" his mother called as she came in.

"Yes, Suki this is my mom," Itachi said.

"It's very nice to meet you," Suki bowed. She was surprised by how young and pretty his mother looked, and also noted how much her sons resembled her.

Once the initial greetings were over, Suki was led into the living room where there was a decorated tree, a couple sofas and a low table in front of the TV. Sasuke was sitting on the floor at the table with some cocoa. After Suki set down the gift bag by the tree, she took a seat next to Itachi on the sofa behind Sasuke.

"So what did you do today, Sasuke?" Suki asked him.

He just looked at her and shrugged before directing his attention back to the TV.

"This morning he went on a mission with his team and teacher to help deliver packages and gifts to people's houses."

"Oh, I remember doing that when I was a junior high genin," Suki said. "It was so much fun!"

"Sasuke," Mikoto called from the next room. "Would you help me for a minute?"

"Sure mom," he said as he moved to get up and then left. As soon as he left, Itachi put his arm up on the backrest and around Suki's shoulders.

"So I saw Sasori yesterday," Suki said.

"Yeah?" Itachi said.

"Yeah, he's been taking care of Raven's cats, mainly because of the one they're training together, so he's been going over there each day."

"Was he asked to do it?" Itachi asked.

Suki shrugged, "I think it was only implied, like he was expecting to as an obligation."

"That sounds about right," Itachi chuckled.

Suki laughed to until she looked up above them. "Huh?" she said and then looked away blushing.

Confused, Itachi looked up as well and was shocked to find mistletoe waving around above them. He blushed at the thought of kissing Suki right here and now. Looking over, there was Sasuke holding the rod with the mistletoe and had a rather bored but amused expression.

"Sasuke!" Itachi shouted at him in embarrassment. Like hell if he was going to be kissing is girlfriend for the first time in front of his little brother.

"Mom told me to," Sasuke sighed and pointedly looked away.

Mikoto came in giggling with her hands covering her lips. "I'm sorry Itachi, I couldn't resist, I don't mean to tease you," she said.

Itachi's face was complete red. This was so embarrassing. "…Mom…" Itachi groaned.

Mikoto was still laughing, "Thank you, Sasuke," she said and kissed his forehead since he was accidentally holding the rod above himself.

"…Mom…" Sasuke groaned just as Itachi had and also blushed from embarrassment.

As soon as they left again, Itachi stood. "Here, I'll give you the grand tour," he smiled.

"Sure," Suki smiled and hopped up to her feet.

The tour wasn't long. They avoided the area of the house where his father was sleeping so they couldn't possibly disturb him, and they eventually made their way to Itachi's room. "This is my room," he said and led her inside.

"It's so clean," Suki commented.

"Yeah, I just cleaned it anyway," he said. "But I wanted to give you something, a gift," he said and picked up something off his desk. "Here."

He handed her a wrapped box. When she took off the wrapping paper and lift the lid, she found some silver snowflake earrings. "They're pretty!" she said and thanked him with a hug.

He laughed and hugged her back. "You're welcome, I thought they would suit you," he said.

"How could I have ever missed meeting you at KS sooner?" she asked tilting her head to the side cutely as she smiled.

"I just wasn't there much," he said looking away as he smiled awkwardly.

"How come?" she asked as her smile fell slightly.

"I was really sick for most of high school, so I just couldn't go," he explained.

"Why not? What happened?" Suki asked.

"So you know about my family's Sharingan right?" Itachi asked as he sat on his bed. She sat next to him and nodded. "Well mine matured at an early age. At first my father thought it was great, because I was able to learn fast and got very strong quickly. I became the prodigy of the family and my father's training was rigorous. But I overused the Sharingan and since it wasn't given the chance to mature properly when I was little, it caused problems for me and my health took a turn for the worse when my chakra began to poison me. Now I have the highest level Sharingan ever recorded, but I can't use it much or otherwise I could become ill again, and if exerted enough I could die."

"Oh," Suki breathed. She didn't know that, and she felt really sorry for him. It sounded as if it was all his father's fault for pushing him so hard. "You seemed so advanced for our class, I would have never guessed that you missed so much school."

"I was still studying at home and in the hospital when there weren't bandages over both of my eyes, so I kept up just fine, despite the chakra poisoning, I was still quite gifted," he explained while she nodded. Itachi then looked over at his alarm clock to check the time. "Dinner will be ready soon, I know it's kind of early, but we always make sure to have it ready in time for my father to enjoy it before he goes to work," he said.

"Alright," Suki said and began to stand.

"I'm sorry," Itachi said.

"Why?"

"I guess I shouldn't have told you all that about me, it made you sad," he said.

"Oh, it's okay, I'm glad you told me," she assured him and he nodded before moving to his door and put on a charming smile as he gestured her out the door.

Dinner was quite pleasant. Itachi's father, Fugaku, was a little critical at first, but still didn't seem overly so as he asked her how her grades were and what her plans were for the future so far. Suki grades were excellent, so there was nothing wrong there, but she did seem a little unsure about her future plans. After that, Mikoto was sure to keep the conversation light and pleasant. Sasuke didn't say much of anything unless spoken to.

After dinner, Mikoto went to see off her husband to work while the brothers cleaned up.

"It's snowing," Mikoto informed when she returned. They confirmed it by looking out the window. "There's a few inches out there now," she added.

"Do you want to go outside, Suki?" Itachi asked, knowing that she likes snow.

"Sure!" she said happily. They both got their shoes, coats, gloves, and scarves on before going outside. Suki laughed while she ran a short distance with her arms out before spinning around to face Itachi. "Come on!"

He smiled before stepping off the porch and onto the snow. It crunched under his feet, he could tell it was the perfect kind for packing together for snowballs. After a few more steps, she kicked up snow at him.

"Getting over here today would be nice," she laughed as he continued his slower pace. She ran ahead again and picked up a handful of snow, packed it together into a ball, and when she turned around to throw it at him, he was gone.

"Nice try," Itachi taunted from her left and she was hit in the side with a snowball. Suki yelped and jumped to face him. He was standing there with another snowball in his hand and a cocky look on his face.

She threw her snowball at him and he dodged it like it was almost nothing before throwing another at her. It hit her legs, making her jump again. "Oh, you are so on!" she laughed as she gathered more snow.

"I do believe it was you who meant to take the first strike," he taunted.

She glared at him, "You are messing with the wrong girl in the wrong element mister," she taunted right back.

Itachi smirked. His way of wordlessly saying, "Bring it on."

Their little snow fight didn't last long, they were laughing too much to be serious about it. Then the cold was starting to make itself more known to them. Suki breathed on her gloved hands to warm them back up a little from handling the snow.

"Here," Itachi said as he took her hands between his and held them close to him. She blushed a little before looking up at him. He had a very thoughtful look.

"What is it?" she asked, worried.

Itachi smiled gently as she shook his head. "Thank you," he said quietly.

"For what?" she asked.

"For making me smile," he said and pulled her a little closer. "And for being here with me today," he added before embracing her. Her hands were still on his chest as she leaned against him.

"It's nothing, I'm happy to do it," she said while he still hugged her.

He pulled his face away to look at her. "There's another thing," he said and she was about to asked what it was when he continued. "Thanks for being my girlfriend," he added and kissed her. Suki was surprised at first, it was like something out of a fairytale with the pure white snow around them and still gently falling from the sky. The kiss was short and sweet, but said all that it needed to say.

"You're welcome," she said when he released her and took a small step back. They were both blushing a little, the small smiles on their faces also evident.

"Would you like some cocoa?" he asked.

Suki giggled, "Sure," she said before following him back inside.


A/N: Typically, men can't shop if they don't tag along often, even when given a list to remind them. And this AU doesn't have cellphones for poor, lost Sasori to call/text Chiyo for more information.

Among the rain: Sasori and Raven's first kiss.

And Snow: Itachi and Suki's first real kiss.

For as much as I dislike Sasuke, I still have to make him a part of Itachi's life, so the little brother got to be in a scene this time again. Also, besides Suki's snowflake earrings, all other gifts will be left to the imagination.

Reviews are always nice, anytime. Thanks for reading.