A Different World
Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Sasuke will be narrating this one.
Chapter 10
As Sasuke was kissing Naruto, Gaara's words rang in his head. The words that had finally pushed him over the edge. Thanks to the other Slytherin, ther would be no going back after this point. So the words that brought him to his crossroads would likely forever be etched into his memory with wicked precision.
"I don't think that he likes wizards though." Sasuke said.
"Only one way to find out for sure. I doubt that's going to be the issue though. You two have been obsessed with each other for years. So do everyone a favor and get on with snogging his brains out. The whole lovesick puppy routine is most unbecoming of a Slytherin." The other Third Year replied.
He supposed that Gaara was right. Slytherins didn't brood all day and wait for something to happen. They MADE it happen. That's why they were known as the ambitious House. They always worked tirelessly towards their goals.
Alright. Sasuke wasn't completely naïve. He was aware that many witches and wizards had a less charitable view of his House. They could bugger off though. Slytherins tried to take what they wanted and that was that. There were times when they were willing to bend or even break the rules to achieve their goals, but who didn't?
"So you want to be my boyfriend?" Naruto asks as he breaks the kiss.
Surprisingly, Naruto had actually kissed back. Sasuke smugly notes that the blonde sounded a little breathless from their kiss. Maybe, that was a good sign.
"Yeah. I mean you said it didn't matter if someone had a broomstick or a cauldron…" The raven haired boy reminds him.
Naruto's kisses tasted like honey and oranges. There was also a hint of vanilla. So the sweetness of the honey wasn't overpowering and the oranges were somehow exotic.
That and he had shockingly soft lips for such a loudmouth. Sasuke had expected the texture to be rougher, but he could work with that. Soft was nice sometimes too.
"Well yeah. Well I guess we can try. I mean you're a really good kisser. I mean at least I think you're a good kisser. It's not like I have anyone to really compare you to. Not that I want to compare other people to you. I mean that would be really mean and yo-" Sasuke shakes his head and silences his babbling blonde with another kiss.
Naruto was still Naruto. It was like his words were water and his mouth was a very ineffective damn. They just came pouring out of him sometimes.
Sasuke didn't mind though. It mean that he never had to guess what was going on in the other wizard's mind. The Gryffindor was truly the very definition of an open book.
"Loser, you said yes. Don't ruin the moment by babbling." Sasuke says with a smirk, after ending the kiss.
"You know, I didn't expect such an antisocial bastard to be good at kissing. You're still a bastard though! You should be nicer to me. I mean I AM your boyfriend now." The blonde retorts smugly.
That was probably a good point. It was just so easy to fall back into their bickering even as the taste of the other boy's kiss still lingered on his lips. Maybe, he should try to be more romantic.
Nah. That was for chicks. They were boys. He'd just drag him off for snogging sessions and take him to Hogsmeade. Things like that. There was no need to turn into a bunch of saps!
"Yes, you are. We're still the same people though. So you'll still be a babbling idiot, but now you're my babbling idiot. I'm still an antisocial bastard, but now I'm your antisocial bastard. It's that simple. Let's not make it complicated." Sasuke replies.
"Yeah. I guess that might be the easiest way to do this. Hey, um do you feel like we're being watched or something?" The sapphire eyed Gryffindor asks suddenly.
Damn. Right. Gaara was probably still there. The red head had decided to come along to show moral support or something like that. Well Gaara's version of moral support, anyway.
That apparently included lurking while Sasuke had his first intentional kiss. Honestly, it was a bit creepy when he thought about it. Whatever though. It was the thought that counted. Gaara was trying to help and he had.
"Maybe, it's one of the portraits. Come on. Let's get out of here. We're still in the Restricted Section and it would suck to get caught. I'd rather not have our first date be in detention." The Slytherin says.
"Yeah. That's a good point. That wouldn't be very romantic." Naruto agrees as the two of them slink off together.
It was thanks to the little psycho that Sasuke had his first boyfriend. First and last hopefully. Sasuke never really wanted to go through that again. Putting everything out on the line and opening yourself up to the possibility of rejection was NOT fun.
Though he couldn't argue with the results. The results were nice. At least this time. Snogging was fun at least.
"So do you want to tell the others that we're together now? They're probably going to find out." The blonde says.
That was true. Hogwarts Gossip Mill was legendary. Rumors spread faster than the speed of light around here.
"I don't know. I hadn't really thought that far ahead. I was more worried about whether you were going to say yes or no than what might come afterwards." He admits sheepishly.
"Awe! That's sweet! The big bad Slytherin is really a softie deep down." Naruto says, positively beaming at the knowledge.
Sweet wasn't really what he was aiming for, but Sasuke takes that as a good sign. Apparently, Naruto liked sweet. Perhaps, it might be best just to go with the label.
"Maybe, a little. Only for you though and don't you dare tell anyone." He states firmly.
In his mind, it was likely best to lay out the ground rules of their relationship early on. That would prevent a lot of annoyance and confusion further down the line. Really, it was only the logical thing to do when he thought about it.
"Don't worry. I'm not going to tell anyone. It'll be our little secret. That and the fact you taste like cinnamon candy." He states merrily.
He tasted like cinnamon candy? That was unexpected. Oh well. If Naruto tasted like honey, Sasuke could live with cinnamon. It was a suitably masculine taste and didn't insult his pride.
"Good to know. So did you wanna tell them or just keep this between us?" The Slytherin inquires.
"I'd rather tell them. I mean I doubt they'd really have an issue with it. Everyone knows Kisame and Itachi are together. No one has said a word about that." The blonde reasons.
Probably because Kisame was likely to skin them alive, if they did. His brother and Kisame made for quite the formidable pair. It would be nothing short of suicidal to tease them about their relationship.
He and Naruto didn't really have that going on yet. Yeah. They were both Quidditch Players, but they were still only Third Years. The only people intimated by Third Years were First and Second Years. (Oh and maybe other Third Years).
"Yeah. They'll find out, anyway." Sasuke says.
He wasn't ashamed of preferring wizards. It had taken him awhile to realize it, but Sasuke didn't really care what other people thought of him. It was Naruto that he was concerned about.
His boyfriend most certainly did care what others thought about him. Naruto was the very definition of a social butterfly. The last thing that Sasuke wanted was to cause him grief over preferring broomsticks to cauldrons.
"Yeah. They will. Besides, I doubt they are going to make a big thing over it. We still have that potential serial killer on the loose. That might distract them from caring too much that we're now Snogging Partners." Naruto says brightly.
Well that was true. Sasuke never thought that he'd be grateful towards their attackers, but he was. Well at least at the moment.
"I don't think they're trying to kill us. If they were, they could have hurled the Killing Curse at us. We wouldn't have had any time to react." The Uchiha replies.
"Yeah. I guess you're right. Maybe, we should go talk to Itachi about it." His boyfriend suggests.
Sasuke nods in agreement. That was probably a good idea. With that in mind, he heads off with Naruto towards Itachi. He knew where his brother would be. The Infirmary.
"Hey, Itachi!" Naurto calls out to him brightly, when they arrive.
Sasuke watches as Itachi raises an eyebrow. They weren't doing anything different at the moment. It was like he and Naruto were holding hands or anything, but Itachi knew.
Sasuke wasn't sure how he knew that Itachi knew. He just knew that the other man did know. Probably because it was Itachi. The Ravenclaw had the infuriating habit of knowing everything.
"Hello, Naruto. Sasuke. What brings you here? Neither of you look sick or injured to me." He says with a serene smile.
That serene smile. The all knowing smile. Just once, Sasuke would like to shock his brother about something. To know something that the other man didn't. Anything!
"We think that whoever attacked us, isn't trying to kill us." Sasuke says bluntly.
It was probably best not to beat around the bush. At the moment, it was just him, Naruto, and Itachi. Tsunade wasn't there. Likely because she was visiting Jirayia. Her husband didn't have any classes to teach at this hour.
"I thought that as well. It seems like they deliberately attacked you while you were at Quidditch Tryouts because they knew someone would catch you. As for the flying rocks attack, that could have been fatal in large numbers without any Shield Charms. They had to know that we had several upperclassmen in our group that. Of course, we were going to manage Shield Charms." Itachi answers.
So Itachi knew that the person wasn't trying to kill them. Though that still didn't solve the most important questions. Who had done it and why? What was their end goal?
"So what do you think we should do about it?" The blonde asks.
"Any evidence is long gone. If you take someone's wand there is a way of knowing what their last spell was, but that was months ago. They would have likely used hundreds of spells since then. There is also the possibility that they used a disposable wand and just destroyed it, after the attack." The Ravenclaw points out.
"So what should we do?" Sasuke asks.
"Unfortunately, I'm afraid that there isn't much we can do in this case. We'll simply have to wait and hope to find some clues." Itachi says as he pokes Sasuke's forehead.
Sasuke grumbles! Itachi always did that! That forehead poking thing! It was really annoying!
"And congratulations on finding your first boyfriend. I'm happy for you." He adds.
"Wait. How'd you know?" Naruto asks as he blinks rapidly.
"The two of you are walking closer together than normally and there is a certain lightness in your steps that symbolizes relief and happiness. Body language can give away far more than words." The elder Uchiha informs him.
That was unsettling. Itachi could apparently tell what he was thinking just by looking at him. He would have made a good Auror.
"Why did you choose to become a Healer instead of an Auror?" Sasuke asks.
"Hogwarts is my second home. That and I get more satisfaction out of patching people up than locking them up. Plus it does have another lovely advantage. This means that I have several more years to torment you, before you graduate." Itachi says happily.
Oh lovely. His big brother had decided to train under Tsunade because he wanted to annoy him. Why him?
A few hours later, Sasuke was heading to retrieve his forgotten spell book from Transfiguration, when he overhears something interesting.
"You know that this can't keep happening. These students have been repeatedly attacked. I'm glad that you're teaching them how to make weapons for self-defense like daggers, but this can't be allowed to go on." Kakashi says.
"We have no way of knowing who is behind this. Without knowing that, all we can do is prepare them for the worst." Obito snaps at his friend.
The teachers were definitely on heightened alert. The Aurors were gone, but apparently their professors were all on the case. Interesting. Sasuke hadn't foreseen that. Though he probably should have.
"Orochimaru's old wand had an explosive spell on it as its last one. He lost it. Remember? Well I found it. I think he was the one who knocked Sasuke off his broom." Rin says.
Sasuke's eyes narrow. Orochimaru had done it! Orochimaru was behind all this! He should have known!
He had to tell the others. That's when Sasuke turns to head off, but he trips on a forgotten Quill and follows over. Damn it! There was no way that the professors weren't going to hear that!
"Wait. I think I heard something." Kakashi says.
Sasuke panicked and tries to get up as quickly as possible. That's when he saw the Sorting Hat. Thank Goodness for miracles.
"I'm really sorry about this. Just pretend that you fell." Sasuke says as he shoves the Hat over and he takes off like a bat out of Hell.
"Damn brat!" The Hat hisses under his breath as the trio comes out into the hall.
"Hat, are you alright?" Rin asks in concern as she kneels down to help him.
By this time, Sasuke had made it around the corner and was watching. It looked like they seriously thought that the Hat had just fallen. Good.
That meant the teachers didn't know that he knew the truth. Orochimaru had done it! He must have done it! Why else would he have "lost" his wand and just happened to have used that spell before losing it?
"Yeah. I'm fine. I'm still getting used to my legs. Still beats having to bum rides from the chicken or the students though." He grumbles.
Thank Merlin. The Sorting Hat was actually going along with it. With that in mind, he leaves the Hat to their tender, love, and care. He had more important things to worry about. Sasuke had to tell the others!
A short while later, Sasuke was able to organize a meeting of all the students that he knew well in the Room of Requirement. At the moment, it looked like a living room with a lot of couches, coffee tables, and refreshments scattered about.
"Sasuke, what's going on? It's not like you to try to get everyone together like this." Sakura asks.
"I know who attacked us. I overheard some of the teachers talking." Sasuke begins.
"The idiot almost got caught too! He shoved me out of the way! Made me take the fall for him!" The Sorting Hat grumbles.
Sasuke sighs. Yeah. The Hat was still annoyed about that, but they had more important things to focus on.
"Sorry. I'm sorry about that, but at least it was worth it." The youngest Uchiha apologizes.
"Well come on! Who did it?!" Suigetsu demands.
"Yeah! I wanna know too! We need to know so we can report them and protect ourselves from this freak!" Karin agrees.
Sasuke notes that was probably the first time that the female red head had ever agreed with Suigetsu on anything. This was certainly one for the history books, he thinks to himself wryly.
"Orochimaru. They found his "lost" wand. The wand had an explosive spell on it. He was the one who attacked me at Quidditch Tryouts." Sasuke explains.
"Well now we know who did it, but not why." Itachi says softly.
"This is bad news. A teacher?! How are we ever going to report him?! No one is going to believe us! Who is going to take the word of a bunch of kids over a world famous Potion Master?" Kiba says mournfully.
Shino swats Kiba. It was clear that the insect lover had had quite enough of that. Sasuke found himself suddenly grateful for Shino's interference.
Sadly, Kiba wasn't saying anything that wasn't true though. Who was going to take their word for it over Orochimaru's?
"Well we could try to drug him with a Truth Potion." Ino suggests.
That wasn't a bad idea. Unfortunately, that was easier said than done. Orochimaru was a Potion Master. It wasn't going to be easy to trick him.
"You're kidding, right? He's never going to fall for that." Shikamaru says.
Temari whacks Shikamaru for pointing that out. Obviously, the Fourth Year Ravenclaw didn't want anymore doubts to be voiced. Sasuke didn't either. All of this was only making him more and more nervous.
"It was a good suggestion and maybe we can drug his food or something." She retorts.
"Yeah! Food is always a good idea! We can ask a House Elf to prepare him something." Choji suggests.
"That's not a bad suggestion." Neji says as he glances at Hinata.
Neji was Hinata's cousin and he was still overprotective of her. Though Sasuke privately acknowledges that for once, he had good reason to be. Their Potions Professor was attacking all of them for Merlin's Sake!
"I still don't know why he would do this." Hinata whispers.
"Perhaps, he's gunning for Minerva's Position. Orochimaru probably wants to be Headmaster. If there are a lot of attacks under her watch, she might be declared incompetent." Gaara points out.
That was interesting. Yeah. That made sense. Why didn't he think of that?
"Well we aren't going to let him do that! That creep has had this coming to him for a long time!" Naruto shouts.
Sasuke nods in agreement. That much was obvious. What was less obvious was how they were going to get Orochimaru to eat the drugged food.
"This is pretty freaky. I can't believe that a Professor would pull this sort of thing." Kankuro says.
"Professors are human just like anyone else. They're just as capable of good and evil. In this case, it's evil." Haku chimes in wistfully.
"Well we know who did it and we have a plan. All that we have to do now is act on it." Jugo adds.
The youngest Uchiha couldn't help, but agree. It might not be the most sophisticated plan in the world, but there was a chance that it could work. Right now, it was their only shot. Beggars couldn't be choosers.
"Yeah! Let's catch this bad guy! Yeah?!" Deidara exclaims.
"Oh Dear Lord." Tenten groans as she smacks her forehead.
"The Power of Youth will save the day!" Lee adds as Gaara shoots him a Death Glare that had even Sasuke shivering.
Right. They had their plan and they knew who their target was. Jugo was right. Now they just had to carry out said plan and catch the bad guy!
Meanwhile the two mysterious figures meet up again. This time in Knockturn Ally. They had some shopping to do.
"Framing him was a brilliant move." His companion says.
"Thank you. Orochimaru is so wonderfully easy to cast as a villain. Stealing his wand was a stroke of genius." The man says.
The children were now frightened and it was only a matter of time before they found their scapegoat. Once they did, the real fun would be begin.
He and cloaked figure could cast themselves as their saviors. They'd help the children and save them from the "evil" Potions Master. After that, it wouldn't take long to have their loyalty and from there, they could continue their real plans in earnest.
"You can really bring her back?" He asks.
"Of course, I can bring her back. Necromancy is something of a lost art, but it isn't lost to me." She replies.
Good. He'd have her back then. The witch that he had sided with was powerful and ancient. If anyone could do it, it would be her.
"Good. I'm glad. Should you do this successfully, you will have my eternal thanks." The dark haired man promises her.
"Oh I don't want your thanks. I want your abilities. You can truly be instrumental in helping to shape this new world that we are about to create. I've always admired your cunning and magical talents. Together, we can do great things." The hooded figure says with a sly smile.
He knew why she wore the hood. The woman stood out in any crowd. Once she took it off, there would be no going back. She'd be too instantly recognizable by anyone well versed in history.
"You're far too kind, but I suppose you're also right. Now is not the time for gratitude. Now is the time for action." He agrees.
"For far too long, the magical community has allowed the Muggles to rule. Mostly because of their superior numbers. We never should have allowed them to flourish as much as they have. They breed faster than pixies." She says with a dramatic sigh.
He knew the real reason why she wanted to start this revolution of hers. She hated Muggles. Her lover had once been a Muggle and in the end, the Muggles had turned him against her.
The poor woman had nearly been burned at the stake. Of course, she just used a Tickling Charm and pretended to be in agony. It was a good thing that she knew how to put out the fire and make it look like it was still burning. She had been able to fake her death.
"That's true. These Muggles certainly are a fruitful lot." The man agrees with his mysterious companion.
"Yes, that much is obvious. Though that won't save them. For far too long, our kind has had to hide in the shadows. That won't be the case for much longer though. Soon, our people shall know absolute freedom. Just as we were always meant to." The woman in question says with a quiet, mad laugh.
He was under no delusions. His companion was powerful, but she was quite insane. A brilliant strategist though.
None of that matter to him. The only thing that mattered was getting her back. Back from the dead. Soon enough, he would be reunited with his long lost love and well the rest of the world could burn as far as he was concerned. Kaguya could do whatever she liked with it.