As always, please review and tell me what you think I know there were a lot of feels in the last chapter. I want to know what you guys think! Please please please!
Also please don't shoot me for being late!
Chapter Twenty-FiveAvery
After she left the reunion she built in Tsunade's office, Avery had made her way back to her apartment. Thoughts of the past months where her focus had been the images of Itachi running through her dreams were now colliding with thoughts that Itachi, the man who she had seen as no better than a walking corpse -though she had to admit that he pulled it off extremely well- in the middle of a war, was alive again. She felt as though at any moment she was going to go absolutely insane because of it.
She had been there for Itachi's death. Not physically to see it, but she had still been there. She had still seen every moment of it as though she had been there herself and witnessed every second. She had felt his emotional presence dissipate and finally cease to exist as he had taken his final breath. Seeing him in reanimation had been chaotic enough on her nerves and emotions. It had taken a toll on her mind as well and she had to admit to herself that there had been a great amount of time that she had wondered to herself if it was simply just a fevered nightmare from a mind that had, frankly, been touched by grief and loss in the midst of a brutal war zone.
Now he was alive.
Hell he was more than alive, he was here! Walking around the same village. Standing on the same streets. Looking at the same sights that she had become accustomed to looking at every single day, morning, and night, that she had been here. And, to add further sting to it, he was only mere miles away from her. Only streets away when before he had been lifetimes away from her. It was more than likely that she would run into him here. That thought alone made her somewhere between anxious and just a little bit nauseated.
As soon as she opened the door she tossed it shut behind her and flopped down on her bed. She laid there for only a few moments before she reached to grab her pillow and hold it over her face as she groaned loudly into it.
Her heart had been racing since the angel of destiny had arrived and offered him his life back. Even in her world the presence of one of the angels, in any type or capacity, showing themselves was rare. And usually they only appeared to witches, not regular people. Of course being honest with herself the people of this world weren't exactly normal either. The feeling that had shot through her and settled in her heart and her stomach had been enough to knock the wind out of her. She had felt her stomach clench, and her heart stop all at once in that moment. It was like everything had just stopped in that moment for her and she had been unable to breathe until it caught up with her. She was extremely glad no one else was able to read emotions like she could; otherwise everyone would know how she felt about the situation… about Itachi.
She began to imagine what life might be like now that the Uchiha was alive again. Would he move in with Sasuke or live on his own? Would Sasuke and Naruto be able to continue to hide the nature of their situation, or would they be somehow forced to reveal the nature of their budding relationship? She almost hoped for the latter to happen. The two of them deserved to have the happiness that they had been denied for so long, and now it was finally happening for them. Even though it was strained, they were taking the steps that they had been dancing around for so many years now…
She glanced over to her nightstand where a picture sat, and stared briefly at the faces of Sasuke and Naruto with a frustrated sigh; Avery and Sakura were getting increasingly frustrated about the whole situation, and most of the time they refused to actually talk about it because they were so annoyed that they weren't actually just dating now. Sure, she would admit that the relationship was set in motion, but they were still dancing around it like it was something taboo and something that might just blow up in their faces the moment that it was acknowledged. It was actually a little funny from an outsider perspective just how much they resembled their Sensei when it came to relationships. Kakashi and Tenzou had been much the same way when things were starting out, but once they had actually talked about things it was like they had just settled into it. Naruto and Sasuke seemed to be further from that than Avery liked them to be…
As she moved the pillow off her face completely, and hugged it to her chest, her mind wandered off of the frustrating pair and back to Itachi.
She could finally feel her heart slowing down now, but she found that it was hard to focus on much else than the possibilities of Itachi being alive and what that could mean for the village; as well as the people in it. She had been so attracted to him initially, and clearly still was since no matter what he said sounded like a steady flowing waterfall of pure, shimmering, gold lapping softly against her ears. The sound of his voice was steady. It was confident, and it was somehow seductive as well. There were so many different sides to his voice that it was almost impossible to describe it with words.
Sitting up, she decided she needed to do something to distract herself.
She thought about what the plan for the rest of the day was, and decided it was time to busy her mind with whatever that was as soon as possible so she could push Itachi away to remember it long enough to get things done. She had figured that summoning him would be a little distracting for her, but now he was actually alive and staying in the village; that thought alone was beyond distracting.
She knew that the plan was to have another big gathering over at Lee's dojo that night. It was a good opportunity for the parents to get to see their kids interacting with their friends and that they were happy so Avery thought it would be fun. Lee had offered to help her with set up though, so she decided she should go find him and get that going.
It didn't take her long to find the aspiring TaiJutsu master.
He was out training while Gai coached him from the wheelchair that he was now bound to for the rest of his life. It was a hard thing for everyone to see. And even harder to accept for some. He had always been such a force of energy and light that people had a hard time thinking of him as being trapped in a wheelchair and unable to run around the village anymore on his hands. No more races with Kakashi, no more bursting through with his "dynamic entrance" anymore… it was like someone different had been placed in front of them and their real Gai had been locked away somewhere in a little bottle and hidden in a box.
Avery had seen Gai a few times since he got out of the hospital, the first resulting in her beginning to cry all over him. Gai, being the overly positive man he always was, told her that youth would persevere and she should never feel remorse for him. It didn't stop her from feeling those feelings, but she had tried her best not to show them in front of him. It was getting easier to accept, but it was still hard to see him that way when in her mind he was still the overly energetic man standing with his hands on his hips and vowing that he would do three hundred laps around the village for whatever reason that he had managed to come up with that day. It had been that way for so long, and she wasn't about to change that image of him now. He was still Gai, even in a chair he would always be Gai.
As she approached the two, she noticed that Lee was sweating and breathing heavily, which meant they might almost be finished anyway. She walked up to them and plopped down on the ground next to where Gai's wheelchair was.
"Hello Avery," Gai greeted her as Lee finished his last set of the exercises he was doing.
"Hey Gai," She responded lazily. "I'm just here to collect Lee when you guys are finished."
"We are finished," Lee said through fatigue shortened breaths. He then picked up his water bottle from its place laying on the ground and took a long drink from it before he splashed some of it on his face to cool down a little.
"Just let me take a shower. I'll meet you at the dojo in twenty minutes?" He asked Avery.
"Sure," She said with a smile. She stood back up off the grass and smiled as he bowed a little to her and walked away.
"What do you two have planned at the dojo?" Gai asked nonchalantly.
"We have a party to set up for tonight," She replied with a mirrored casualness.
"Sounds like a youthful time," He said proudly.
Avery just chuckled as she rolled her eyes at his response.
"You're welcome to come by," She said with a wide, beaming, smile.
"Thank you. I might just take you up on that," he said with a slight nod. He then took his leave, rolling the wheels on his chair easily even through the uneven terrain of grass and dirt. That was one thing that had to be decent about how strong Gai was is that he wouldn't have to struggle to get used to the strength it took to maneuver a chair.
She beat Lee to the dojo, it was clearly because the black haired boy had to go home and shower but she had still gotten there first, so she was able to figure out where she wanted to begin. She looked around, smiled to herself, and began dusting off the place. They hadn't used it in the last month so it was in need of a little cleaning before they could set it up.
True to his word, Lee appeared only ten minutes after Avery had shown up herself. She looked up to see him walk in and almost dropped the box of cleaning supplies she had been holding as her jaw dropped.
"Lee…" She said in total shock.
Avery knew Lee had been considering trying out a different look. Tenten had been talking to her about it a couple weeks ago when the two went out for a girls day with Sakura and Ino, only leaving Hinata out because she was on a retreat with her family. She knew it was coming, and yet she had no idea what to say now that she was faced with it.
Lee had traded his usual green jumpsuit out for dark blue skinny jeans and a fitted green t-shirt that hugged his defined chest and muscular arms. He had on black sneakers and his headband was wrapped through the belt loops of his jeans. But the most shocking part of the whole scene was his hair. He had cut his hair very short on the right side, leaving the hair on top long and brushed to the left. She didn't understand how he had accomplished the haircut in such a short time, but she was too shocked to question it.
Lee blushed lightly as he scratched the back of his head, "Is it that bad?"
"Gods, no it isn't bad at all!" She said rushing toward him.
She reached out to comb her fingers through it and realized that it was only the same length it had been on the top, and both sides were cut shorter. He could comb it to either side and it would look good. The top had layers in it and he had put a light amount of gel in it to keep it all on the left side of his head. Despite the product use, his hair was still soft and looked like whoever had done it, had done very well.
"How did you manage to do this in just twenty minutes?" She asked as she walked around him to see the back. "Did you have an appointment or something?"
"I did it myself actually," He said proudly. "I took my shower, cut it, then I blow dried and styled it."
Avery turned him to face her as she gaped at him.
"You did it yourself?" She asked incredulously.
"Yes, that is why I asked if it looked bad," He said with a laugh.
"I'm so proud! It looks amazing!" She said and hugged him.
Lee returned the hug happily. When the blue haired witch finally released him, she eyed him suspiciously. He bit his lip a little under her scrutinizing gaze,
"What?" He asked a bit nervously.
"I knew that you were considering a new look," Avery said as she stepped away from him and folded her arms over her chest. "I'm just curious as to why and why now?" She asked.
Lee shuffled his feet nervously. He knew she would ask him, and he knew she could feel the nerves fluttering inside him. He knew she would guess or try to figure it out, so he decided he might as well tell her.
"I… uh… have feelings for someone…" He said slowly.
Avery's violet eyes lit up and practically sparkled in excitement.
"What? No way! Who is it?" she asked.
Lee blushed darker and turned away. He hadn't told anyone except Tenten about his crush. She had told Neji, and the two of them had been helping him, coaching him, through what to say and how to handle it when the time came to talk. He had not had the nerve to tell anyone else he was gay, or who his feelings were for. For whatever reason he had been sure Neji wouldn't understand, but when Kakashi and Tenzou had come out, he wasn't as sure.
Gai had been the only one to know most of his life about his sexual orientation. It was yet another thing the two of them had in common. The man had been so much like a father to him all those years that he had no problem opening up to him. He had always been grateful to his sensei and he would never really be able to express just how grateful he was to the man.
"You don't have to tell me. I understand if it's hard to talk about," Avery said backing off a little. She could feel the nerves and the uncertainty in him and it made her realize he might not be completely sure about this.
Lee just bit his lip a little.
Avery was always so helpful and amazing with everyone. Literally everyone in the village loved her and she was so compassionate about a person's feelings; probably because she could literally feel them herself. He knew she would be understanding about his being gay, she had been involved in pushing Kakashi and Tenzou together, so he cleared his throat and uncharacteristically quiet said:
"I'm gay."
Avery turned back toward her friend and smiled gently.
"So, it's a guy then…" She said as she started to think of who it could possibly be. A horrible thought crossed her mind and she sideways glanced at Lee.
"It's not Neji right?"
"No! No absolutely not," Lee exclaimed. "He and Tenten are so good together and I'm glad they are finally dating."
"Okay good," She said. "I'm all for happiness and crap, but that would be a huge bundle of uh-oh," Avery said with a short laugh. She thought a bit more, humming slightly as she thought about who her wonderfully awkward and cheerful friend could have a crush on.
"Do you know if he is also gay or not?" She asked curiously.
"No, I do not," Lee said as he took in her lack of surprise at his emergence from the closet. "You're not surprised that I'm gay?"
"No, I'm not," She said without looking at him.
"I thought that was going to be the hard part," Lee said frowning a little. "I don't really know why though I guess."
"I'm good at reading people," Avery said with a shrug. She stood with one arm across her chest while her other elbow rested on her hand and she tapped her cheek in thought. She was struggling to think of who it could be that Lee would have a crush on.
"What made you start to like him?" She asked a bit excitedly.
"If I told you, it would be obvious who it is," Lee said suggestively.
"Hmm," Avery said, and her blue brows furrowed slightly in concentration. It was while she was working on trying to figure out who in the village would be obvious that she realized who it could be. She recalled talking to the person it could be after the first day of her fighting to prove her skills.
Gaara… she remembered how fondly Gaara had spoken of Lee and how remorseful he had been about what had happened between them. He seemed to really respect Lee. It made her wonder, could Lee feel the same way toward him?
"Is it Gaara?" She asked with her head cocked to the side curiously.
Lee blushed a little and turned his face away. Before he even spoke there was a flush that crossed his face that told her she was right. There was even a kind of shock written there that clearly said that he was surprised that she had guessed it so quickly. On her first try she had pinpointed what he had tried to conceal so easily.
"Yes, it is."
Avery felt the smile cross her lips hearing him say yes. She was practically giddy now knowing who it was. She saw Lee turn back toward her with curiosity and wonder on his face at her expression. She simply turned away from him and continued with her task.
"What is that look for?"
"I don't know what you mean," Avery said simply.
"Avery!"
"Come on, Lee. We gotta get this place cleaned up before the party tonight," Avery said, completely avoiding his question. She quickly moved on to finish cleaning the dojo and smiled mischievously when Lee dropped the subject and began to help with a soft sigh.
The news that Lee had feelings for Gaara made Avery completely forget her nerves and frets about Itachi. She was too busy thinking about what might happen for her two dear friends. Lee was sweet, caring, and a little over the top at times; Avery had a definite soft spot for the strange TaiJutsu user. Then Gaara had been one of her very first friends when she had come to this place. She loved him like a brother and she wanted the best and greatest happiness for him.
Gaara was also quiet, sarcastic, and reserved. He and Lee were so different, but Avery was positive they would be great together. She had suspected Gaara was gay since she met him. She was sure he would figure it out, and she wondered if Lee would be the one to help him understand.
They spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning and setting up for their gathering. Avery had turned on music once they had finished cleaning and the two were dancing around and singing together the whole time they were preparing. Soon though, they came to the part of preparation where they needed to go get food and drinks, so they took off together to go and get that out of the way. It would be a little bit awkward if people started showing up before they even had anything set out for them.
By the time they got back, other people were starting to show up. Neji and Tenten had come first and had not been nearly as surprised by Lee's new look appearing that night as Avery had, though Tenten did take the time to tell him he did a great job.
Lee was also not the only one with a different look for the evening. Tenten had forgone her normal twin buns and left most of her hair down with one bun made from the top half of her hair. She was wearing a red and white, mid length dress that was similar in style to her usual shirt and a pair of knee high boots.
Neji had let his hair hang completely loose, a style Avery had heard Tenten say she liked multiple times, with his forehead bare. The mark he usually bore on his forehead was not showing however and at first Avery wondered what happened. She quickly realized Tenten must have covered it with a light makeup. It was a little confusing to her. She had been told many times about the Chuunin exam finals where he had taken off that head cover of his and shown the entire village the mark. It wasn't like anyone would say anything or mind it showing, but she figured that it was more from his dislike of it that it had been covered. It was for his comfort. He was wearing white pants with a dark blue, long sleeved shirt and his usual shoes.
They also weren't surprised that Avery now knew about Lee's feelings and hopes for the evening. Lee had told the three of them that he hoped he would be able to find a moment to pull Gaara to the side, even though he had his mother around tonight, to be able to talk.
"It's not a bad idea, doing it during a party when no one is going to be paying special attention to much of anything. I mean, karaoke of course, but otherwise, you're golden," Avery said. It wasn't like Gaara was going to be sucked into Karaoke unless Kankuro managed to get distracted from the presence of their mother, but with her here his playful side was less likely to stir. And Gaara wasn't much of a performer either. It was likely that he might observe, but he wouldn't just jump up to take part like his siblings would.
"But with his mom here? He might not want to make her think he doesn't want to be around her," Tenten said.
"He's been with her all day. And she has two other children to spend time with as well," Neji said in a very even and factual tone. His arms were folded over his chest and his eyes were closed as he spoke.
"That is true," Lee said as he thought. His normal bold tone was pulled way back with the uncertainty clouding his emotions. It was the most subdued Avery could remember ever seeing Lee be.
Avery shook her head a little as the two continued to discuss Lee's plan for the evening. As they began to walk toward their usual table, she glanced over toward the door and the first thing she saw was Itachi's deep eyes staring right back at her from his place in the doorway. For a brief moment everything seemed to stop and she was frozen with him. Everything that he did was in slow motion. Even when he blinked, all she could do was watch his thick lashes as they contacted one another. The sight seemed to be so intimate that she was almost jealous of those lashes. But it was hard to feel much of anything other than an ineffable, and overwhelming, sense that she was like a mouse in the gaze of a hungry and persistent raven. He was watching her as he stood there with his parents and Naruto's parents, but she didn't see Naruto or Sasuke anywhere. It was only then that she tore her eyes from his long enough to look around and try to see them. But the parting of their gazes didn't last very long. Violet eyes darted back to onyx and a shiver ran up her spine. She couldn't look away, her eyes were locked to his, and when his lips curved into a gentle smile, she finally tore her eyes away from his completely as heat flew through her entire body and colored her cheeks. She found herself very quickly cursing her pale complexion as she tried to suppress the hot flush from her skin.
It was another few minutes before Naruto and Sasuke walked in. Naruto looked a little frazzled, but unless you really knew him like Avery did, it wouldn't be obvious.
Sasuke on the other hand look completely defeated and more than just a little bit annoyed. He rejoined his parents, who had come in before him but wisely decided not to ask. Both families lingered by the door momentarily before they made their way over toward Avery.