Chapter 10

Hunting, shopping, and music

I awoke from my wonderful slumber suddenly. I was sweating, something I normally didn't do while sleeping. I remembered turning the A/C unit off, sleeping next to Itachi, your own personal freezer pack, was enough to make you shiver. So when I woke soaked in sweat, I knew he was no longer at my side. Maybe in my kitchen, perhaps he got hungry? What did vampires eat when they craved something besides blood? I tried to focus again. I sat up and looked around. My sleeping eyes barely staying open. I didn't see him immediately. I got up and exited the bedroom to look in the kitchen/living quarters. Not their either.

I passed by the clock and did a double take. I stared at the bright green numbers that shone brightly on the front of the small box. The numbers seemed to shout at me, 2:45. I looked at the window, the blinds were pulled closed but I could see some brightness outside. It was the middle of the afternoon?! Why didn't he wake me up?! I ran back to the bedroom to throw on a new uniform, the one I had fallen asleep in was barely acceptable.

As I was searching for my hairbrush to tame the mane that was called my hair I spotted a lone piece of paper on my bed. I approached and examined it in my hand. Written on the front in absolutely perfect calligraphy it read To Miss Hanabi Hyuga. I unfolded it and read the note Itachi had left me.

I know you're probably angry with me for not waking you. But you had a long weekend. Like I've said before, it is healthy to skip some classes every now and then. Sleep well Love. I will come and get you when school is over. We're going to Coppedge. I have some business to take care of, something about this place seems off. I don't want to leave you here alone and with my brother and Edmund about. We will be in Coppedge for a few hours; you will stay with Kneese and Michel while I'm away with Hidan. So bring something to entertain yourself. Stay safe in the few hours while I'm gone. You come off as the type who finds danger in a padded cell. So please say safe and don't answer the door. Like I said, something feels off. Keep my heart safe while I'm away Hanabi, I left it with you.

I noticed how he had messily scribbled Edmunds name on the paper and giggled. But what could possibly be off about today? It seemed like just another day to me, and then remembered the fact that I had the most amazing person in the world. I was his and by some shocking come of events, he was mine. I looked through the blinds, nothing looked different. It was cloudy, as usual. Kumo was in the one place in the world that the sun apparently forgot.

Fifteen minutes. Not really worth getting on a new uniform for. I hopped in the shower, hoping to wash off the musk smell from the sweat before Itachi came. I knew when he'd said "when school ends" he meant no later then 3:01. The smell of my shampoo, lavender, and the feel of the hot water panging against my back calmed me. The thought of him and Hidan alone together made me shiver. But I pushed that thought from my mind quickly.

I stepped out of my shower and looked at my cell phone, well my pathetic excuse for a cell phone. My dad and his morals, apparently I would have to wait until I proved myself a responsible adult to receive my cut of the inheritance. He didn't care if I was forty and didn't have the money, he would wait, and I was sure that if I still hadn't inherited the money before my father died the job would be passed on to Neji, who would be even more harsh than my father. I was the second heir of one of most wealthy families in Konoha, yet I had the crappiests things. I was fifteen, and had no car. My cell phone looked like something from the early nineties, when they had just begun to believe that the smaller the better. Not to mention I lost connection every three steps. The only update electronic I had was my Ipod, which I had bought with my own money. The small digital clock on my cell phone read 2:59.

"Crap," I said as it changed to 3:00. Sure enough I heard a voice in my room, though I had not heard the door open at all. "Hanabi? You here?" I didn't move, didn't breath. My clothes lay on my bed, laid out for me to change into. I was dripping wet and in a towel, the word towel was being used incredibly loosely. It came to my high thigh and had holes in it. The knock made me jump. "You okay Hanabi?" his voice was worried. "Close your eyes!" I shouted. I could almost hear his eyebrows furrowing. "Why?" I clenched my teeth, trying not to blush. "I'm naked! Close your eyes!!"

He chuckled. He was laughing at me. I opened the door and scurried to the bedroom and changed. Once I was decent in my jeans and tank top I came to meet him in the living room. "You ready?" he smiled up at me. His illegal smile, the one I loved almost as much as I loved him. "Almost" I said, trying to work a smiling as stunning as his. I knew it would never be as beautiful, that was a bit discouraging…

I ran to my closet and pulled my purse out, with my Ipod and my books and homework, which Itachi had thoughtfully brought me. "Itachi, can you lift me for a moment please?" I asked innocently. Surprisingly, to me at least, he didn't ask questions but just complied. He held my waist with his iron hard hands and lifted me and set me on his shoulder. I frowned at him. "I'm not too heavy am I?" He barked a laugh, apparently that was a no?

I riffled through my junk. Looking for something I hadn't seen in a few months. I smiled as I spotted it in the very back of the top shelf. I pulled it out and saw an almost even layer of dust on the case. Itachi placed me back on level ground. "You play the violin?" He seemed pleased. It was strange how excited he was to see my case. "No, fiddle actually." His smile was unchanging as he pulled out the necklace I had seen that night. The night I discovered the truth.

For the first time I got a good look at it. It looked like it was made of silver and there was a small pendant on the chain. The pendant was a small diamond shape; in the center was a carved rose. It was incredibly beautiful. "What's this called?" I asked grabbing the pendant as Itachi moved to wrap the long chain around both of our necks. "It's called a skipper. It's used to move between this world and my world. They come in different means, I have one painted on the garage door of my house in Coppedge," he said smiling. He wrapped his arms around my waist and told me to close my eyes. I wasn't as shocked this time as I had been the first time I had been transported using the strange devise. The pressure against my skull didn't seem so harsh this time.

When I opened my eyes we were in a garage. It was hard to imagine technology in this world. It just looked so seventeenth century! But sure enough there were a few cars in this garage. It looked like it used to be a ballroom, it was overwhelmingly enormous. There were three cars, two motorcycles, and two trucks. "Which one is yours?" I asked curious. Not that I knew much about them, I just wanted to seem interested. He pointed towards two cars near the corner. One was something simple. It was a dark blue color, to match his eyes. Small and compact. The other was something I could actually recognize. It was a Porche. I looked it over; it was a dark crimson red. "You own a Porche?!" He laughed at me as he led me to a door that supposedly led back into his house. "One to blend in, and one to rub in," he laughed.

He led me into the living room, I hadn't noticed the television in the room the last time I had been here. Michel and Kneese sat next to each other; Zephr sat on the far side of the room on a comfy looking chair. When Kneese spotted me she smiled brightly and darted forward. "Hanabi, we are going to have the best time ever! I am so excited, I haven't had a girls' day in months! Hidan never wants to go anywhere!" I stiffened. A girls' day? Did he seriously think I was the girly type? Okay yeah, I had been raised in the world of dresses, but that was necessary, I had always been asked, along with my family, to attend parties and things like that, but I was never the type who did back flips a the thought of shopping.

The look on Kneese's face made me feel guilty for thinking of turning her invitation down. "Yippee!" I said trying to sound enthusiastic. "We going to the mall?" Itachi growled at Kneese. "Don't get your panties in a bunch! I'll be with her, I won't let anything bad happen to her." It looked like Itachi believed her. But it couldn't picture Kneese fighting, or even defending herself against an attacker. "Hanabi?" an unfamiliar voice was calling my name. I turned and looked at who it was. I saw nobody. "Over here!" the voice was coming from my shoulder. It was like Lalasa. A pixie, I think it was called. "Um…yes?" I asked, nervous for some reason. He bowed. "My name is Karin, I was assigned as your pixie by the Council of Noble Vampires."

He was the same height as Lalasa, but he wasn't glowing red, like she did. He was a brilliant white. His fragile looking wings fluttered slowly, but he stayed at the same level. He rose from his bow and smiled at me. His face was that of a teenage boy, thirteen at the most. I smiled back, he seemed nice. "It's nice to meet you Karin, thank you so much for agreeing to be my pixie." I wasn't sure what exactly a pixie did but I didn't want to be rude. "Karin, Hanabi and I are going out, so if you would like you can stay here, with Lalasa." Karin nodded happily and retreated up the stairs.

I turned to find Itachi, he was in different clothes. "Alright, Hidan lets go." Hidan was down the stairs in seconds. She was wearing sturdy looking jeans and a large t-shirt, her long burgundy hair pulled away from her face in a ponytail. "I'm ready, lets get going while the game is still fresh," she smiled. It was the first time I'd seen her do that. Itachi was dressed close to the same way she was, jeans and a t-shirt. "Where are you going?" I inquired. Itachi grinned at me, "Hidan and I haven't eaten anything in a few days I'm starved personally. So we're off to hunt." Hunt? So that's how they got food, it was so simple yet I was surprised. "Well don't let me keep you waiting, bring me back a prize," I laughed at him. He wrapped his arms around me, embracing me in a cold hug. He planted a light kiss on my lips and rushed out the door, at superhuman speed, with Hidan close in tail.

I returned late, around eight maybe? It surprised me how much fun I could have with Kneese. She was definitely my new best girlfriend. How easily we could get along?! She truly sympathized with me, she could imagine how difficult it was for me to wrap my head around everything I had learned in just a matter of days. I could have girl talk, clothes, food, make up, boys. It was so strange but fun!

To my surprise I learned that she and Zephr were together. Something I couldn't bring myself to picture. Sweet small fragile Kneese with sarcastic loud and overbearing Zephr. She laughed when I had accidentally projected this thought into words. "Zephr can actually be very gentle, very sweet." I looked at the way her eyes softened as she described him. It was the same way she felt about Itachi. The eyes that told that he was the only one she would every feel so strongly for. The only man who she would ever look at or think about. Zephr Woodmere. I was spacing out when I heard her say something 

about Itachi being happy. "Of the seventy years I've know Itachi, I've never seen him as happy as I have now. I'm glad you're part of his life!"

As they entered the home they heard nothing. It sounded empty except for the creaking on the ceiling, indicating someone was upstairs. "We're home!!" Kneese shouted up the stairs. I set my shopping bags down near the dinning room table and approached yet another thing I had failed to notice. The grand piano that was pushed against the glass wall was absolutely amazing. It was large, black, sleek looking. The ivory keys looked freshly polished. I sat down at the bench and ran my fingers across the keys. I hesitated before I began to play. Deciding what I would play, I suppose.

A tune rang in my memory, the tune Itachi had hummed to try to coax me to sleep to. It seemed so familiar, like I had heard it thousands of times during my childhood. I paused again, trying to hear it again, making out each note. Then I began playing. I started playing the harmony then mixed in the melody underneath it. It was beautiful. I listened to the music fill the room; I closed my eyes to get the feel of it. It flowed through me and like many things in the world, it reminded me of Itachi and me. The harmony would never be me. I was just too normal, to plain to be heard above everyone else. I was the melody, the low soft music in the background that enhanced the beauty of the harmony. Itachi was my harmony, without it the melody sounded boring, plain, nobody wanted to listen to it. But mixed with the perfect harmony it mixed to make the most beautiful music. I felt words fill my mouth and let them flow out. "Rose, Rose, Rose, Rose. Will I ever see thee wed? I will marry at thy will sire, at thy will…" I'm not sure how I knew the lyrics, but I did. I felt a hand on my shoulder, I turned and saw Itachi, staring wide eyed at me. "How do you know that song?" he asked, his voice soft.

I shrugged. "It's what you hummed last night, right?" He nodded, taking a seat beside me. "It sounds very familiar. I think I've heard it before." He looked a little confused but dropped the subject. Itachi took up the melody and let me continue playing the harmony. "I didn't know you could play," I said, frowning slightly. He smiled and nodded happily. "I'm not big for piano, I'm more of a cello man if I do say so myself." I smiled at him and continued playing in silence.

After a few seconds he broke the silence. "So, what are you doing on Friday?" he asked. I shrugged, "nothing really why?" He smiled, excitedly, like he had won the lottery. "Did you want me to take you to the Halloween dance?" That made me freeze. I had forgotten he didn't know about the Hanabi/Dance factor. Dancing was something I just didn't do. It was like trying to make a squirrel jump rope, it just wasn't possible. "NO! Itachi, I don't dance, sorry if I just ruined your weekend plans, but it's just something that I don't do." Itachi laughed and kissed my forehead. "Don't worry, I won't make you go. Maybe you and I could get out of town for the weekend?" I frowned. What would my dad say? Would he agree to let me go out for the weekend with my "boyfriend". Yeah right, like that was all he was to me. He was much much 

more. And as for being out of town all weekend with someone of the male gender? Ha! Maybe if he was drunk and on crack and in the middle of an orgy? But who said he had to know? My birthday was inching closer, I should get an early present, right? Like I didn't already consider Itachi my early birthday and Christmas present for the next millennium. "Sure," I said, thought my voice was every but.

"Oh, your birthday is coming up, isn't it?" he asked. I had prayed that he wouldn't mention my birthday. "Yeah, why?" His illegal smile again, darn it… "I need to get you a present" he said, like it was obvious. "Nu-uh! I'm not letting you get me anything!" He looked taken aback by my sudden outburst. "Why not?" I glared at him, "I've got you. I don't need a present, besides I'm not letting you waste your money on me!" He looked at me like I had lost my mind. I felt him reach around and dig into my back pocket, making me squirm a little, and pulled out my early nineties cell phone. "Are you serious? Hanabi, I there when cell phones first came out. This is way worse than anything I've ever seen. At least let me buy you a new cell." I shook my head, not a chance. "Fine," he said, with a hint of triumph in his voice. "I'll find a loophole." I glared at him again.

"So how was your hunt?" His mouth straightened into a line. "Why?" I shrugged, still playing. "I'm just curious. So what's your favorite food?" I heard him chuckle like I was missing the punch line to a funny inside joke. "Well, I sort of followed Hidan around today. I can never get much good hunting done when I'm with her."

"Why not?"

"Hidan is into the small game, her favorite is falcon. And despite the wingspan on those little demons you would be surprised at how little blood is in that body." I suppressed a chuckle. I'm not sure why I found that funny but I did. "So what's your favorite, and what about Michel?" He looked over at me, smiling wide, his teeth were sending a glare across the room. "Michel is big for panda. I'm trying to get him into something a little less endangered." I gasped quietly. Of course that didn't escape Itachi's notice. "As for me, I like shark. Since Michel and Hidan are land lovers I don't usually get to have any, is that very fair?" he asked grinning.

The thought of Itachi wrestling a great white made me grin. "So," I began. "You think I'll be able to go with you sometime? Ya know, to observe?" Apparently Itachi had lost of practice with. The only reason I thought this was because the keys didn't smash to a billion pieces. He smacked his hands down on the piano and looked at me wide eyed. "No!!" I recoiled. I little shocked from his reply. I watched his rigged spine relax and he slumped over again. "Sorry, I have a problem with my temper…I'm sure that you've noticed. But I don't think I'd ever let you come with me hunting." He stopped and glanced at me, smiling shyly. Then his expression hardened, "When we hunt we give ourselves over to everything we suppress to live among you. We allow all of our emotions to infuse themselves with our instincts and that's when we become real monsters."

I couldn't stand when he said things like this. Since I discovered the truth. I would have to grind my teeth whenever he referred to himself as "monster". I didn't like when he got like that, he wasn't the scary beast that he thought he was. He wasn't a thriller extra gone wrong, he was prince charming! I would never and could never be afraid to be around Itachi. He was my life. I gently traced a circle on the back of his ice cold hand. His gaze, which had drifted to the floor, now slowly, flowed in my directions. I heard him sigh and I drew my hand back. "No," if I hadn't have had my super-special-acute-hearing I probably wouldn't have heard his mumble. "You have no idea how wonderful that feels the warmth of your skin." I blushed; I couldn't stand how easily he made me do that.

I looked at him again, "It's late, I should probably get home." He looked at me and grinned, "Sorry. I keep forgetting you sleep. I should probably get a bed in my room for nights you have to spend the night." I frowned, "No, don't spend your money on me. You couch is perfectly fine." That was a lie, his couch was comfy, but the crick in my neck told me otherwise. "Hanabi, you are by far the worst liar I have ever met," he laughed. "And besides, it's not like I'm going to run out of money, we've all got hundreds of thousands of dollars in our band accounts." My jaw dropped. It wasn't like I had never seen that much money, but she wouldn't have guessed he had so much. "How?" I managed to choke out. His smiled widened, showing his gleaming white teeth.

"With centuries behind your belt and a sister who can see the future, you can get a nice bit of cash in your wallet with help of the stock market," he winked at me. (That goes straight to Stephanie Meyers, not my idea!! Its all her.)He grabbed my hand and led me to the garage again, I stopped and grabbed my bags on the way out. We stopped at the large garage door and I looked at him, about to ask why. He was staring at me. After a few seconds I got the drift and stood on my tiptoes, attempting to stretch as far as I could to reach his lips. He tilted his head slightly and pressed his lips against mine.

I probably should have been able to control myself this time. I had learned my lesson the first time. There was no excuse. I pushed myself against him, wanting to be as close to him as I could. He pulled away again and stepped back. I hadn't realized how close I had been to running out of breath. My chest heaved up and down, sucking in oxygen. "Hanabi," he breathed. "Sorry." I wasn't.