Disclaimer: Neither Drake nor I own any Naruto characters. We own Joshua and Arlene and future characters owned by us will be noted

It was just after dinner and Arlene had tucked the last plate into the dish rack, where the soap bubbles slid down the smooth surface and then dripped onto the tray beneath that would lead it back to the sink. Tobi had begged to help do the dishes, just like any child who didn't yet understand that chores were meant to burden, but Pein had decided that he would only break more dishes than he dried and refused him.

Arlene suggested Deidara take Tobi's place tonight, but Itachi pointed out that his hands would only be licking the plates, making them dirty again. Itachi and Pein were too busy reading encyclopaedias and Pein had agreed that Joshua should be researching how to get them back home. Sasori was a prick and Itachi felt that it was still too soon to let him near Arlene, which made Joshua wonder why he was always so concerned for her well-being. He understood that she was the glue that was keeping them all alive right now, as recent events had made clear, but something still didn't make sense about it.

And so, it was up to Hidan to aid Arlene in the cleaning of the dishes and the kitchen after dinner. After much complaining and swearing, Hidan had finally stood in the kitchen, simply waiting for Arlene to instruct him on what to do. It was a whole new game for Hidan, but he had managed to survive this far and was nearing the end of his sentence.

He picked up a pot from the draining rack as Arlene lay in the last plate from the sink. He watched her in the reflection of the window that peered out into the darkening sky as evening began receding into night. Toweling the metal cooking bowl dry, he simply watched.

Arlene fought to suppress the chills that had been running up and down her spine since dinner was over. She couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her but couldn't figure out who. Sasori was watching television, like always, Joshua was in his room, Pein and Itachi were reading and Deidara and Tobi had gone out into the yard so that the aforementioned Akatsuki could read in peace.

That only left Hidan, but every time she peeked at him out of the corner of her eye, he was merely staring out the window, bearing his signature smirk. He'd been quiet since they'd started the dishes and she couldn't figure out if that was good or bad, but seeing as Pein made no issue of it, she assumed that is was normal for him to be quiet sometimes. But even so, part of her still felt that maybe he was truly upset about her touching his hair. Some guys could be like that.

Joshua sat in his room, in front of his computer. He'd been researching and researching and coming up with nothing. For a moment he even considered going to the public library but then quickly brushed the idea aside. It was a small library and mostly held fictional novels. As far as resources went, the internet would be most useful to him.

Joshua leaned back in his chair, stretching his long arms above his head. He allowed his chair to lean back ever so slightly but suddenly, it leaned back farther than he expected, causing him to jolt forward as the feeling of falling encircled him. His feet slammed into the floor as he was once again sitting upright. False alarm. Damn, he hated it when that happened. It never mattered if he was alone or with someone, it was always embarrassing when that happened.

Staring out his window, Joshua's thoughts strayed off to other things. Video games, a new book to read, watching a movie, perhaps; but his attention was retrieved by something flying by his window. Standing, he moved toward his window and opened the curtains a little wider, peering out into the sunset before looking down into the yard.

There, he spotted Tobi and Deidara playing catch with a yellow tennis ball. Deidara seemed bored and annoyed, as usual, but Tobi was very enthusiastic and Joshua couldn't help but chuckle at the sight of his cartoon like sprint.

It was then that Joshua had a slow forming notion. Tobi…was he not Madara? Madara…was he not powerful? Surely, Madara wasn't merely sitting around waiting and relying on someone else to get him home to carry out his plans. What was he really doing at night when he was out in the living room? Maybe he had been working on a jutsu that could get them home…but now that Pein and Hidan were here…

Pein had been sleeping in the same room as Itachi, though whether or not they were sharing a bed, Joshua neither knew nor wanted to know. But that wasn't the point. Hidan was sleeping in the living room on the floor…Madara wouldn't be able to work on a jutsu with Hidan sleeping right there. If Madara really was making use of his time alone…Arlene could have just ruined everything in her fighting attempt to one-up the elder Uchiha brother.

Joshua almost felt like crying at that idea, but his thoughts were broken by a loud Bing that rang out from his computer speakers. Turning away from the window, he approached the machine and stared at the task alert on his screen. Tomorrow was going to be the day that the older folk of the town would start receiving their monthly pension cheques and various other payments. That meant it would be a busy week for him and Arlene.

Leaving his room and padding his way to the kitchen, Joshua stopped at the entrance. He took quick note of the occupants and their positions in relation to him. "Arlene," he said, firmly, causing her to turn around from wiping down the stove. "Do you know what tomorrow is?"

Arlene thought for a moment. "Monday?"

Joshua raised an eyebrow at her then shook his head. "Yes, but cheques start coming in tomorrow. We're going to have work to do."

Arlene inhaled slowly. "Oh, yeah. I forgot." She looked down at herself. Her top was wrinkly and far too big and her jeans were having a hard time staying up and rolled upward where they reached her ankles. Her eyes widened as she returned her gaze to Joshua. "I'm going to have to go home!"

Pein and Itachi whipped their heads around. "What?" Pein said.

"You can't go anywhere," Itachi said. "You're supposed to be a prisoner."

"And you have to cook," Hidan added from his laying position on the couch. He was clearly tired from cleaning.

Arlene let out a soft laugh. "Not to stay. I need to get some clothes. I can't go to work in Joshua's clothes."

Pein tilted his head. "You work?"

Arlene looked at Joshua and he knew she was fighting the urge to say D'uh. She looked back at Pein. "Well yeah. We have to get money somehow. Food and clothes cost money. And we aren't exactly into the practice of stealing."

Pein frowned at her. "When it comes to theft, the level of pettiness versus respectability is measured by the necessity of the steal. Given that you live in a world where everything you need to survive is at your fingertips, I would expect that you acquire your needs honestly. To steal something when there is more than enough to go around is just…dishonorable."

Arlene eyed Pein, quietly. She eyed him in a way that made Joshua nervous. He wasn't exactly sure what she was going to say to him. She merely trailed her eyes from the tips of his pointy hair to his toes and back up.

Pein squinted at her slightly. "What?"

Arlene offered him a gentle but thoughtful smile. "It's nice to see that there is someone else here who gazes into the grey areas of life rather than focusing on the black and white. I respect that."

Pein lifted his head and gave her a sharp nod. Joshua's jaw began to grow slack as it came close to plummeting to the floor, but he caught it just in time. Itachi smirked at her and returned to his book. Sasori turned his wooden head. "You are a fool child. There is no grey. There is only black and white. Life and death."

Arlene retorted. "And what about you, Sasori of the Red Sand. A shell of the boy you once were. Existing inside a coffin shaped to your formal self; neither living nor dead…I think you're about as grey as it gets."

Sasori stared blankly at the girl as Hidan let out a loud laugh. "She's got you there, sucker!"

Joshua turned his head away from Sasori as he couldn't force back this smile that crept to his lips. He couldn't help but feel a stabbing pride for his friend who was always quick to consider other people's beliefs but never waver on her own. Her faith was strong…and in that moment he realized…that's what she saw in Hidan.

No matter how many people told Hidan he was wrong or belittled his god, the Jashinist never let anyone sway him. He knew what he believed in and would follow it to the end of the earth. In that way, they were very much alike.

Pein cleared his throat to break the tension. "Hidan, you will accompany Arlene to her home to retrieve her clothing."

"Aw, man, more chores? Babysitting? I'm too fucking tired. Get someone else to do it."

Pein opened his mouth to tell off Hidan, but Itachi rose to his feet. "I'll go with her," he stated firmly, letting Pein know that he didn't want an argument over it.

Pein nodded approval to the Uchiha. Joshua shifted. "Can I go, too?"

Pein looked at Joshua. "Shouldn't you be researching?"

"I have been. I'm not coming up with anything."

Itachi moved past Joshua to pull his cloak out of the closet. "You'll stay, Joshua. I need to converse with the girl, anyway."

Arlene cast Itachi a droll stare. "I have a name."

Itachi cocked his head. "As do I. In fact, everyone here has a name."

Hidan let out another laugh from the living room and Arlene smirked at Itachi. "Uchiha's got some cheeky in him," she laughed. She pulled her own coat from the closet and dug her car keys from its pocket.

"Drive safe," Joshua said as the two walked out the front door.

When they were gone, Pein's voice rang loud in Joshua's head, nearly causing him to jump. You're not worried about her?

Joshua shook his head. "When it comes to her, I can trust Itachi."

"What?" Sasori asked.

Joshua realized that he'd spoken out loud and only Pein knew that his statement was a reply to someone else's question. Joshua cleared his throat. "Nothing," he said quickly. "I'm gonna go research some more."

As Itachi and Arlene made their way to her car, Arlene glanced over her shoulder. "So what did you want to 'converse' about?" she asked then stopped to unlock the driver side door.

Without words, Itachi swung his hand up from behind her. He brought the palm of his hand up to the left side of her face but held back any force that would cause her pain on contact. He left his hand to linger less than an inch away from her skin. As he expected, she didn't react. In fact, she showed no acknowledgement of his hand. And so, after waiting a good five seconds, he laid his palm against her cheek, gently, so as not to startle her.

That wasn't much use as she jumped anyway then turned around to look at him with a quizzical stare. "My hand was suspended in the air by your face long enough that your peripheral vision should have spotted it," he informed her. "You showed no knowledge of its presence. You should have flinched, at least."

Arlene sighed. She knew what he was getting at. At least he was being kind enough to not bring it up in front of the others. She used her chin to subtly point to where Deidara and Tobi were playing with a volleyball. "I'll tell you on the drive," she said.

Itachi nodded, accepting her conditions. He walked to the other side of the car and got in, buckling his seat belt. He watched as Arlene waved a quick goodbye to Tobi before she got in the car herself.

Arlene remained quiet until they had made it out to the main road. She glanced sideways at him. "I don't see so well out of that eye anymore."

"I gathered," Itachi said dryly. "I am more interested in why."

Arlene hesitated as she made a left hand turn. "Remember the other day, when we were walking and you used your eyes to see my thoughts?"

"Actually, I was viewing your emotions. It's just a bonus that the emotions are usually connected to thoughts."

"Whatever. The point is, you saw that memory. You saw him bust that bottle over my head, right?"

"Yes."

"Well…when he did that, a piece of the glass got into my left eye. Left a big scratch in there and now…it doesn't work as good as the other one."

"How bad is it?"

Arlene let out a dark chuckle. "You saw yourself. The leftmost of that eye is next to useless. Most of the time I can only see straight ahead with that one."

Itachi remained silently and kept his gaze forward. He watched as they passed numerous houses, most with barren lawns that were muddy and wet looking. The road they were now driving on was not a deep grey like the other roads, but brown. It was bumpy and dusty and reminded him of the countless roads he's walked on when he was in his own world.

Before too long, Arlene had pulled into a short driveway and turned the car off. The left the car and walked toward the small, two-story house. From outside, the upper level seemed dark and void of life, but bright lights shined out the front window of the lower level.

Itachi saw Arlene pause briefly at the door. She turned the knob and let herself in. Itachi followed close behind her, pushing the door shut behind him. The place was small on the inside as well, but spacious. There was a small television set in the corner and an armchair set a few feet back from it.

There was a closed door to the right of them, but Itachi didn't bother asking what was behind it. Straight ahead was a wide doorway, and peering beyond that, Itachi could see the linoleum flooring and a counter. That must have been the kitchen.

A loud grunt rang out from that kitchen and Arlene paused. From around the corner came a man that was resembled the one from Arlene's memory. The only difference was that this man now had a scruffy beard and a large round belly. He leaned against the white frame that separated the kitchen from living room and took a swig from the bottle in his hand, never taking his hooded gaze off of Arlene.

"So, you're back again, you ungrateful whore," he slurred. "Shoulda shipped you off to that boarding school. Maybe you'd be fighting for your country instead of hobbling around this town," Jack paused to burp, "helping the old buggers."

Arlene sighed. "Dad…that's boot camp…not boarding school."

Jack licked his lips and scratched himself. "Whatever," he grunted before shifting his gaze to Itachi. "And who is this?"

Arlene hesitated very briefly. "A friend."

Jack stood up, attempting to appear threatening. He eyed Itachi up and down. "You gonna marry my daughter, boy?"

Arlene rubbed her temple. Itachi didn't answer him. He merely glared and Arlene wished that he wouldn't. She didn't need any reason for her father to get angry. Luckily for her, Jack merely scoffed and stumbled his way back into the kitchen.

Arlene tugged at Itachi's sleeve, signaling him to follow. She didn't bother removing her footwear as she walked across the carpet, headed for the stairway in the corner, not too far from the closed door. It was then that Itachi spotted the large red stain in the beige carpet. His sharp eyes quickly took in the position of the stain and the small trails that signaled a spread. That had been the spot where her father had beaten her. Itachi twitched inwardly. How many times had she walked by that and remembered? Why did they not have it removed?

His thoughts were broken by his own memories. First of himself, then of his brother. He fought them off quickly and focused on following Arlene.

At the top of the stairs, there was no hallway. There was a small area of floor that separated the door on the right of the stairs from the door on the left and another door straight ahead. It was left open and through the darkness, it appeared to be a washroom.

Arlene turned left and opened the door. She stepped into the room, flicking on the light. She moved to the side and waited for Itachi to enter the room before closing the door. She moved to her closet to get her large duffle bag to pack her clothes in.

Itachi stood in front of the door as Arlene pulled clothes from her dresser and her closet and stuffed them all into the bag. He noted the posters of various people that plastered the walls and assumed they must be entertainers. But the wall across from her unmade bed did not hold posters. This wall bore many frames that contained pictures of other people. Some of them held pictures of Arlene and Joshua. Some were of Arlene and her father and some had the image of a woman who looked to be in her early thirties.

He moved forward to inspect the images closer. The woman had brown eyes and honey colored hair. Her more obvious features were nothing like Arlene's, but the smile this woman bore was a striking resemblance to the girl behind him.

Arlene watched as Itachi stared at the photos on her wall. She zipped up her bag then stood next to him. When she figured out which picture he was looking it, she reached out and pulled it off the wall. Itachi looked down at her. "Your mother?"

Arlene merely nodded as she took the picture and tucked it into a smaller pocket on her bag. She silently wondered if Itachi ever yearned for his mother's touch the way she did for her own mother. She looked around the room, to see if there was anything else she should grab while she was here, but finding nothing, she turned to Itachi.

"Ready?" he asked. Arlene nodded and they headed back down the stairs.

Just as they reached the door, Jack's voice called to them. "Hey! You there!" Both Itachi and Arlene turned to face her father once more. He approached them slowly and Arlene tensed up, not sure what to expect. As he came within arm's reach of them, Jack stopped and held a box out to Itachi. "Do what you want, but don't be stupid. I don't wanna be the blame of a single mother when you leave."

Arlene squinted in confusion, not understanding what Jack was talking about…that is until she looked at the box that Itachi accepted from her father and began spluttering. Jack turned and went to flop down on the arm chair.

Itachi looked down at Arlene as she appeared to choke on words. "Oh dear, sweet, gods, no," she gasped and bolted out of the house. Confused, Itachi headed after her and got into the car.

"What's wrong?" he asked, more confused than concerned.

"Uhhhh….nothing. But…I don't know. Just…no."

Itachi looked down at the box in his hand, though it was already too dark to see it. "What is this?"

"Uhhhmmmm…tell you later," Arlene said letting out a slow, calming breath. She remained silent the rest of the way back to Joshua's.

Itachi held the door open as Arlene hefted her duffle bag through the door and used her foot to slide it down the short hallway. As expected, Joshua came around the corner and greeted her. She looked at him and spouted out a string of flustered words that made no sense to anyone at all.

She peered around the wall to let Pein know that she was back and had gotten her clothes. He motioned for her to enter the kitchen where he sat with his book and a fresh cup of coffee. Tobi bounced over to her from the living room to greet her with a hug that lifted her off her feet. She hugged him back and nearly buried her face in his chest when Itachi showed the box to Joshua and said "What is this?"

Joshua looked at Itachi's hand and snorted. "Where did you get those?"

Arlene's hands flew to her hair and she pulled at it in a very stressed manner. Suddenly, all the Akatsuki had gathered around to inspect the box. Itachi pointed to Arlene. "Her father gave them to me."

At that moment, Joshua doubled over and held his sides, howling with laughter. "Jack gave you those? Oh, man, that is rich!" Joshua continued to laugh and Arlene continued to burn a bright red from her cheeks, which caused Hidan to point and laugh at her. "Gather 'round, guys," Joshua said, casting a smug look to his friend as he opened the box and dumped the string of shiny, square wrappers on the table.

Arlene made an attempt to flee the room, but Pein ordered a quick "sit" and Arlene practically fell into a chair as though pushed down by some invisible force. She bent over and tucked her head between her knees, rocking and muttering, "This isn't happening, this isn't happening, oh please, Gods, tell me this isn't happening."

Tobi patted Arlene's back in an attempt to console her but it was no use. Joshua picked up the wrappers and began educating the S ranked criminals. "These, gentlemen, are called condoms."

Arlene let out a loud cry of distress that caused even Pein to flinch.

The lesson was grueling and the purpose of condoms was explained thoroughly to the Akatsuki. There were many jests and inappropriate comments. Hidan had taken one out of the wrapper to inspect it and even Sasori commented on the lubricant being an excellent idea.

When Joshua was done educating the group of men, Tobi kneeled down in front of Arlene and watched her. She sat perfectly still in her emergency position. He turned his head to Deidara. "Did we break her, Sempai?"

Deidara gave a slow now. "I think so, Tobi."

Hidan's loud laugh rumbled through the house, causing Arlene's spine to shudder. She reached out a hand and patted Tobi's head. "My Tobi…my dear, sweet, innocent Tobi…they've corrupted you…" Slowly, she untucked her head from between her knees and turned her head to Pein. Her face was burning hot with embarrassment and torment. "Can I go now?" she whispered, trying to avoid the numerous eyes that were watching her.

Pein quietly gave her permission to leave. He watched as she slinked past Hidan, keeping her distance. She picked up her bag and headed for Joshua's room where she stayed the rest of the night.