Marie

Bored. I am so bored. I've read through every book Kabuto's given me twice over and now I have nothing to do with my time after Sasuke leaves except stare at the ceiling and wait for dinner.

Kabuto walks in with my dinner as I am lamenting my monotonous existence on my tiny bed.

I wave apathetically at him and he frowns.

"That's not usually the reaction I get from you, Marie-chan. What's wrong?" he asks.

"I'm boooooored." I lament.

"Heh. Well I can fix that." says Kabuto with a cocky grin.

" Noooo I mean like, all the time. There's nothing to do. I don't even have a TV in here. I know I'm like..a lab rat but. I neeeed something to doooooo!" I whine.

"Actually, I was thinking about that earlier. I have a proposition for you. It may not help your boredom, but think of it as...an upgrade." he says.

"Um, okay? Am I getting a bigger room or something?" I ask.

"If you want. You'll have to share it with someone, though." he says.

"Oh my gawwd, Yakushi are you already asking me to move in with you? We've only been going out for like, a few days. Gasp. So sudden!" In reality I was actually kinda excited about getting to have an actual apartment with an actual television and food WHENEVER I WANTED.

"I'm in." I say. "When can I get out of here?"

"Whenever you want." he says.

"Wait. Aren't I still like an experiment or something. Aren't there rules?" I ask.

"Actually...not really, no. You're willing so I guess you can stay anywhere in the hideout."

"Well you DO have a pretty swanky apartment. I guess I accept."

"Alright then. Let's go." Kabuto takes my hand and we get the hell out of there.

"So, since I'm willing, do I also get to roam around freely?"

Kabuto shrugs. "There's really not much here except the lab. I can get you a map if you want."

"Please?" I ask. Kabuto nods and I squeal in delight.

We finally arrive at Kabuto...I mean MY apartment. I skip inside gleefully.

"You know, this place is going to be so much messier now that I live here. I apologize in advance."

Kabuto laughs. "I figured as much."

"No, you don't understand. I'm a slob. Like I can't even keep my room clean for a week. Speaking of which, where is my room?"

Kabuto smirks. "*Our* room is right down that hallway."

"Oh my. I'm already blushing."

Kabuto laughs and leads me down to his...my...our bedroom.

It was actually a very spacious room with a king sized bed and...an upright piano in the corner.

"You play?" I ask.

"Hah. No I don't actually. I've been meaning to learn for a long time but I've never gotten around to it. Do you play?" he asks.

"I've been playing since I was five. I'm actually not very good though. I'm kind of a mediocre musician in my opinion." I admit.

In fact, I almost became a music teacher. My main instrument wasn't the piano, it was the violin. I loved the violin and I though I'd love teaching kids how to play. I didn't. I was terrible at it. I hadn't picked up a violin in years out of shame.

"Can you play something for me? I'd love to hear you play." says Kabuto.

"I have a couple of songs memorized." I walk over to the piano and begin to play "Arabesque" by Bürgmuller. One of the few songs I can play by heart due to its repetitive themes.

The piece is fast paced and the rhythm is difficult to get right but I manage to make it sound somewhat decent with only a few slip ups here and there.

After I finish, I get off the bench and bow. Kabuto claps, as is proper.

"You're quite talented, Marie-chan."

"I'm...I'm really not. That was a very easy song. A kid could learn it. Hell, I learned it when I was thirteen." I say.

"It didn't look easy to me."

"You don't know how to play piano, though. Trust me, it's for middle schoolers."

"You're downplaying your talent, my dear." says Kabuto.

"Don't you do the same with your own talent?" I ask.

"I guess when you put it that way there's no argument."he says.

I walk away from the piano and flop on the bed. Super soft but not too soft. Firm but not too firm. I sigh in delight. I could get used to a bed like this.

Kabuto joins me on the bed, smiling.

"So..now that you have me here, are you going to have your way with me?" I ask, my eyebrows wiggling suggestively.

"Hah! All in good time." Kabuto says, stretching his legs and arms before bonelessly relaxing his limbs. "I'm actually quite tired. I'm afraid that I cannot ravish you in the way that I want to in my current state."

"That sounds hot."

Kabuto chuckles and leans over for a kiss. I move myself onto his chest and he drapes his arm around me.

"Speaking of ravishing...does protection even exist in this universe? You're cute and all but I don't think I'm ready to have a bunch of silver haired children."

Kabuto chokes down a laugh. "My dear, I am a medic-nin. Contraception is a non-issue with me."

"Right. Duh. Forgot you were like a doctor or something."

"There's a distinct difference between practicing medical ninjutsu and practicing medicine, Marie-chan." Kabuto explains.

"Don't you do both?"

"I dabble in medicine, I'm an expert in medical ninjutsu."

"How can you 'dabble' in medicine?" I ask.

"You forget I'm also a scientist. We use all knowledge at our disposal."

"You're a lot of stuff. Scientist...ninja...spy...doctor...must be nice to have so many talents."

"Talents are nothing if you aren't the best." Kabuto muses.

I laugh. "That's bullshit and you know it. Look at me. I play nine instruments. Sounds cool right? Well guess what? I play them all terribly. That's literally my only talent. And I suck at it."

"You don't have a very high opinion of yourself do you, Marie-chan?" asks Kabuto, his voice actually laced with sadness.

"I may seem cute and quirky around you but in reality I'm a worthless human being. I can barely take care of myself."

Kabuto sighs. "I'm sure that's not true."

We sit in silence for awhile. Eventually we decide to actually get in bed. I take off my pants, Kabuto takes off his shirt and we nestle ourselves under the covers, having short sleepy conversations until we both fall asleep in each other's arms.

Author's note: dear god the fluff. I'm sorry it was so fluffy and depressing. I just started writing and...it happened.

Thank you to Kejmur and Tabue2000 for reviewing. I sent you guys a reply via pm if anyone actually checks those anymore. I don't think they do.