A/N: Ahhh, so much school work so early in the year! Well, actually, I was expecting it. I just don't like homework, or most forms of school work. Everything is so hectic! Anyway, I just felt like writing. Here's chapter 12. Maybe I'll hint some more at Kagome/Itachi? Maybe. Last chapter was my friend's favorite. I asked her why, and her answer was the Kagome and Itachi moments in the end at the hot springs. So, since this is supposed to be a romance, might as well start developing some romance. And, I really don't feel like writing about a dinner. So, I'm going to skip that. A few minor details. This dinner could take up the whole chapter, and that would be BORING (for me at least).

Chapter 12: Anniversary

Dinner was…interesting to say the least, actually it passed very quickly. Kagome felt out of it the whole time. For some unknown reason her head was in the clouds. She ate quietly and kept to herself, off in her own little world. She was aware of everything that was happening around her, yet did not consciously know it. If someone had attacked, she would have countered without thought. Yet, she was, in truth, oblivious to everything going on.

She fiddled with her food, waiting for the dinner to come to an end.

Naruto was as energetic as ever, it seemed, frequently making sudden outbursts. The girl, Sakura, was attempting to be polite and scolding Naruto. Of course, this just created more chaos. Mikoto had a warm smile, enjoying watching the preteens. Kakashi had at some point eaten when no one was looking, and Sasuke had a bored, annoyed expression on his face.

Kagome didn't even realize that she wasn't teasing him, a hobby of hers. All she knew was that she felt weird.


Itachi, who had been able to attend the dinner, even with his busy schedule, was watching the scene with slight amusement. But, Kagome seemed off at the moment, distracted. Certainly it wasn't because of earlier in the hot springs. She didn't seem like the kind of girl to get embarrassed. She would live with pride and she would die with pride, that's the kind of person Itachi had pinned her down to be. Of course, nothing was definite, and at this point he was not sure. While Kagome seemed happy and playful most of the time, she had an edge about her. To Itachi she seemed like she put up a façade. But she hid it so well he could never determine if what he thought was true.

So, he sat there quietly, politely, and pretending to be interested in what whoever was speaking was saying. He was resisting the urge the whole dinner to continue to give side glances to Kagome who sat to his right. His mother sat across from him, next to her was Sasuke, and then Kakashi. And, to Kagome's right was Sakura and Naruto. The head of the table was unoccupied, a place for the head of the clan.

Kagome had head gossip around the compound that he had been sent out on a mandatory mission, and could not decline. However, she had also heard that he should have been back by now, and must have been hurt, or perhaps something more extreme. Whatever it was, he wasn't there.


When Kakashi, Naruto, and Sakura finally departed, it was getting dark out and Kagome excused herself and disappeared from the dining room, off to go back to her room. Itachi did the same, but he followed Kagome as she left.

Kagome, of course, noticed him. But she did nothing to alert him of her knowledge because she knew that he already knew. It would be a waste of breath to state the obvious. Not only that, Kagome really didn't care that he was following her.

While she had to admit she was curious, she could wait to find out what he had to say. Because, she was sure he did have something to say. He wouldn't waste time doing something unimportant. He wouldn't waste his sharingan eyes watching her if he didn't have a reason. Of course, that odd feeling of excitement was rushing through her, but she only pushed it down again.

She felt like she was the prey being stalked by the predator. And she did not like being the prey.

Kagome Higurashi was always the predator.

That was a solid fact. One that was not going to change any time soon.

'I'll have to level the playing field if I want to be on equal footing as him.' Kagome was about to confront him. But, he spoke first, his words barely audible. His blood red eyes seemed to glow in the unlit hallway, the shadows masking any other of his facial features.

"Something is wrong." He stated an obvious fact, and that only aggravated Kagome. But, it wasn't him or what he had said that irked her. It was the fact that what he said was true, and she didn't know why. It frustrated her not knowing things. Kagome liked to know everything and anything, perhaps the reason she loved to read and was rather observant.

Itachi waited for the confirmation that he knew would come. He waited for her to say something; because for some reason it bothered him that something was bothering her. And that was irritating him. These unknown feelings, the feelings of…of caring that he had never become familiar with. Sure, he loved his little brother, Sasuke, but Sasuke rejected him. He was a bad older brother. And, that he dealt with. But this caring, and for a girl he barely knew, it was ludicrous.

In truth, he was doing this for his own self gain. The sooner she was better, the sooner he was better. Because Itachi Uchiha could deal with murder, he could deal with torture and the death that surrounded him. He could deal with pain and hatred, anger and resentment. But he could not deal with going soft on some unimportant girl.

While he believed that she had suffered, that did not affect him, did not change his abilities as a shinobi or his performance as ANBU. And while it sounded rather self-centered, like all he ever though about was himself, that was untrue.

He deserved to think about himself after everything that had been taken away from him. And maybe it was the fear of getting close to Kagome and then loosing her that kept him from befriending her. Maybe it was because he couldn't take any more hurt. But, whatever it was, he tried to push her away. Nevertheless, that in itself was a challenge. The reason not being her or any feeling or opinions she might have towards him, no it was because he did not really want to let her slip through his fingers. He wanted to know her. And he wanted her as a friend whom he could confide in. But he was scared.

For the first time in his life, he was scared of getting hurt. He had never let anyone in, and that's how he wanted to keep it. But something about Kagome, something about her made him rethink that. Every night as he lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling unable to sleep, she made him rethink what he really wanted in life.

And, he didn't even know her favorite color, her favorite song, or anything about her.

"No." She snapped back. And, that was the first time that Kagome didn't seem to have her emotions in check. Itachi could hear the frustration in her voice, the upset and hate that filled her. But, he could also see sadness in her eyes. He could see that she seemed to be very sad and regretful. But, she was confused. She didn't know why she was experiencing the feeling that she was.

And in many ways, he could relate.

Itachi chose not to say anything back, only raised an eyebrow at the girl standing in front of him.

"No! Yes, I don't know! Okay, are you happy? I don't know!"

Kagome didn't know what they were. And she wanted to get rid of them, the awful emotions that seemed to be ready to explode inside of her. She wanted to scream, she wanted to do something, anything that would get rid of the tension that seemed to be rapidly growing inside of her body. And, she could control it any more.

While she put up that illusion that she was always calm, always calculating and levelheaded, it wasn't true. She was a human, a human being. And emotions came with that. No matter how much she wished she could erase them forever, they always came back. Those awful emotions.

"Ahhh, damn. Damn, damn, damn! Kuso, kuso, kuso!" She was screaming quietly, yelling without shouting. She wanted to rake her nails down the sides of her face. She couldn't control. And she didn't like being out of control. Because the last time she was out of control, she had murdered her whole clan, murdered her mother and father, younger brother, aunts, uncles, cousins, everyone.

And then, she knew why she was feeling everything. She knew why something was wrong. And, she let her hands fall to her sides, her fists clenched.

Today was the day she had killed them.

"Do you know what it's like to kill people you love?" She asked Itachi, catching him off guard after her sudden outbreak. He did not respond, didn't even blink.

"Even though they were nasty, I still loved them. What a fool I was. I loved them, and that is why I am feeling…this. It's because when I killed them exactly one year ago, I still loved them. I loved them because they were my family. They were all that I knew."

Tears streamed down her face, and he didn't know what to do. Crying ten year-old girls were not his specialty. So, he did all he could think of. He pulled her into his arms and hugged her. Like his mother used to hug him or Sasuke when they were little and they were sad.

Her head came up roughly to his neck, her face buried in his shirt creating damp spots from her salty tears. Her hands stayed at her sides, and he didn't know what to do, so he stayed there like that, embracing her. He let her cry, because he didn't know what else he could do.

And it seemed like forever passed, an eternity of sadness and locked in emotions had all been cried out.

Kagome seemed tired out; she was nearly asleep when Itachi finally released his hold on her. Deciding the best thing to do was to bring her to her room, he also noted that she probably wouldn't last that long.

Gently, he lifted her into his arms, bridal style, and made his way down the dark hallway in the general direction of her room. He noticed she seemed very light, not too underweight, but enough that it bothered him. And that annoyed him.

Opening the door to her bedroom was a little difficult seeing as he was holding her, but he managed, slipping through and gently placing her on the futon. He was about to leave when a small hand darted out and captured his.

"Don't…yawn…go." She was barely awake, but she knew she wanted him to stay. Right now, he was the person she needed. His presence seemed to comfort her. And, if it took him being with her, she would make that happen.

Itachi paused, thinking about it.

Kagome, in a last effort before she feel asleep completely, moved over on the large futon, allowing enough room for him to comfortable lie next to her.

And after a little more thought, Itachi complied, gently getting onto the futon next to Kagome.

The last thing she remembered was the feeling of the weight shifting on the futon as Itachi lied next to her. And then she drifted off into nothingness.

Itachi only turned his head to look at the sleeping girl that had just been crying into his still damp shirt. She seemed so young in her sleep, so peaceful. So, with the image of a sleeping Kagome into her mind, Itachi joined her and drifted off to sleep.


END! I thought this was a cute chapter. Emotional. But cute.

Anyway, review! Cause, I know you want to. I get a ton of views, and not enough reviews!

-Lian