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Disclaimer: Is Lee getting chased by Seme's that want him as their Uke? No? Then I don't own Naruto.

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Title: Angel or Devil

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The first few days back felt a bit crowded but Lee hadn't minded it. Tobi and Katsu stayed by him practically every moment -Lee could swear that the two were arguing most of the time but each time he tried to listen, they were talking normally to each other-. It was rare to get free moments, but he was able to by -guiltily- sneaking away.

That's why he was alone in his room right then. Le was sitting on his bed, facing East once again.

There was a distant feeling in his head, like a link. Someone was there, far away but there. He was weak but slowly growing stronger again.

"Lee..." Shadow Gaara said his name like always, slow and low, intimate without really being intimate.

"What's wrong?" Shadow Shikamaru continued after, and that was just like Shikamaru, always trying to make him feel better, trying to get him to talk.

"Nothing." Lee said, "It is just..."

"Spit it out, brat." The older voice startled him and made his head throb for a moment. He turned away from his eastern wall to look at the still black shadow then turned his gaze back to the wall. Such harsh words, but...they sounded concerned. It seemed that he really did know good people.

"I feel someone over there. Far away but it is in my head, telling me to go east." Lee murmured then his tall black shadow spoke again but the words were off, it was his voice but like the words were taken from different conversations to form this one. His tone jumped with every word.

"Didn't your friend tell you about your bloodline?" The man said, then his tone smoothed out again and his head stopped throbbing, "Remember, kid. You're not a prisoner so leave the idiot thoughts to them. Tch...you're smarter than you think."

"..." Lee pressed his lips together, looking down with warm cheeks. He nodded then thought back, "You...think it is a link?"

"What do you think?" Shikamaru asked

"I think...yes. It is a link, and...I think it belongs to Gaara."

"Why." The black shadow said and Lee shifted in thought.

"Because...East is the desert and Gaara is the only person I could have linked with. I do not know how I did but it might have been when I took Ichibi from him." Lee murmured, then brought his knees to his chest and rested his head on them, "At least...I know he is okay now."

"Good, you figured it out. Now what are you going to do about it." The tall shadow said.

"I...do not know. Should I break it?"

"I can't tell you that. You need to figure it out for yourself. Take the facts you know and decide." He said and Lee held his knees tightly, feeling uncertain. Then the tall shadow seemed to sigh and for a moment, Lee could kind of feel a large hand on his head, "Don't think too much. I'll clean up any mess you make...brat."

Lee choked on a laugh and he almost felt like crying. He smiled and nodded then felt for the link. Like a string stretched thin but still strong, it was there, bright and soft. Lee felt the string with mental fingers and smiled again.

"Hello, Gaara..." Lee whispered, "Thank you for being so kind to me. I think...I will keep an eye on you for a while longer."

Suddenly, there was a knock against his door. Lee blinked and focused on the present, looking towards his door. He stayed still for a moment longer then slowly said, "It is open."

Katsu came in with an expression of relief on his face, "Angel." he said, "You vanished, I was worried."

"Sorry..." Lee said, feeling guilty. He had wanted privacy but he remembered that Katsu had been alone for so long. It was cruel of him to leave without a word.

"It is okay, Angel. I know you did not mean it." Katsu said, smiling. He went to Lee's side and knelt to the ground, not even thinking to take a seat beside the boy.

"Of course, I would never want to cause you worry." Lee said, releasing his knees and letting his legs hang off the bed. Katsu touched his knee, his hand easily covering his knee and half his thigh. Lee smiled and touched Katsu's hand. Katsu turned his hand and Lee looked at their entwined hands. Katsu's hand was so much biger than his and so warm. Their skin was similar but Katsu was a lighter grey than he was now. Lee just couldn't get below sixty percent.

"Angel..." Katsu murmured and Lee dragged his gaze back up. Katsu smiled and Lee read awe and worship in Katsu's emotions. Lee sighed and raised his hand to touch Katsu's face. Katsu shivered and leaned into his touch.

"You are so silly, Katsu." Lee said, lightly laughing, "Those feelings...you do not need to feel such things for me. I am not worthy of it."

"You are!" Katsu quickly said, his free hand shooting up and pressing Lee's hand to his face, "Never say that! You are worth everything, Angel!"

Lee blinked in surprise then slowly smiled, his cheeks warming. He leaned down, pressing a kiss to Katsu's cheek, "Thank you, Katsu."

Katsu stared with wide eyes, his own cheeks flushing with dark color. Lee laughed, finding it funny that Katsu could be embarrassed be such a thing -though the link didn't say anything about embarrassment oddly enough-. He opened his mouth to comment but there was another knock on his door. Lee blinked and pulled his hands away from Katsu before telling the person that the door was unlocked.

The door opened and Lee jerked.

"Lee..." Uchiha Itachi said, a hint of a smile in his eyes before he registered Katsu's presense then it was gone.

"Itachi-...san..." Lee said, feeling breathless. Oh, he forgot how...stunning Itachi was. His heart skipped and his mouth felt dry. But...Itachi had lied to him.

"You!" Katsu suddenly said, glaring at Itachi like he was the dirt staining his white clothes. He stood with a sharp scowl and Itachi narrowed his eyes.

"Have we met?" Itachi asked, his voice cordual but his gaze cold.

"Katsu, please." Lee said, gripping Katsu's sleeve. Katsu paused and looked at Lee before slowly relaxing from his aggressive stance though he was still tense. Then Lee looked at Itachi and said, "Itachi-san, this is Katsu. He is one of the last from the Seishin clan like me."

"So you found family." Itachi said and despite how blank he sounded, Lee knew that he was happy for him.

"Yes, we are distant but I am happy to have found Katsu, or really, I am happy he found me." Lee said, a hint of a smile on his lips. Then it faded, "But enough about me...is there something you need, Itachi-san?"

Itachi stared at Lee for a long moment before saying, "I'd like to speak with you alone."

Katsu seemed to bristle at Itachi's 'audacity'. Lee squeezed Katsu's wrist to stop what he was sure to be an attack and said, "Can you give us some privacy?"

"Angel?!"

"Katsu, please. Do not worry, nothing will happen." Lee said, trying to ease Katsu's worries, "I have not eaten yet today anyway. I hope we can have a meal together after?"

"Y-Yes, of course. I will get right to it." Katsu said, a slight stutter to his words. He turned to go but gave Itachi one last glare before leaving.

When they were alone, Itachi seemed to relax but Lee felt nervous.

"Sorry about Katsu, he is...protective." Lee said, trying to break the silence. Itachi only nodded and the silence returned. Lee pressed his lips together and looked down. He didn't notice Itachi getting closer.

"It's been a long time." Itachi said and Lee's heart stuttered as he sounded closer. Then he saw Itachi's feet and his hair was touched.

"Your color is different, darker... Is that good?" Itachi asked, his fingers curled around a lock of soft light grey hair.

Lee shivered at the feeling, wanting to lean closer. He wanted to rest his head against Itachi and hug him. He wanted to feel those still familiar arms around him as well, squeezing him, keeping him safe. Yet he couldn't. As much as he wanted to, he couldn't.

Itachi had lied to him.

Lee looked up and his heart stuttered again. Itachi was smiling at him. It was small but there and soft and made Lee want to cry. Why? Why did Itachi have to look like that? Why did Itachi have to be so kind even though...

Why did he have to be an Uchiha?

Lee would always hate that name now but...maybe...maybe...

"Yes. The closer I look to my original self, the more stable I am." Lee said, trying not to let his hands shake.

Itachi wrapped the lock of hair around his fingers before slowly letting it slip away. Then he lightly touched his fingers to Lee's cheek, trailing them down to his chin to keep him looking at him, "What did you used to look like?" He asked, voice low and gentle.

Lee swallowed hard, "U-Um...Black hair, pale skin...I think."

Itachi hummed, "Do you remember much from your past?"

"N-No just...people. I have been...meeting people from before." Lee said and he couldn't stop himself from shivering.

"Are you cold?" Itachi asked and Lee didn't want to say that it was because Itachi was touching him so he just nodded. Itachi smiled a little more and sat down next to Lee. His body heat immediately sank into Lee's side and Lee shivered again. Then Itachi gently pulled him close and Lee couldn't make himself pull away.

Lee fell against Itachi and lightly gripped his cloak. His heart was pounding and his eyes burned but he bit his lip, keeping in any sound.

"I-...Itachi..." Lee began but what he was going to say, left him.

"Will you tell me about those people?" Itachi asked, his voice a whisper like this was a secret between just them.

And Lee wanted to, he wanted to tell Itachi about everything. He wanted to talk about how he went on a mission with Sasori and Deidara, how he traveled with Konan to meet 'someone important' and met Shikamaru along to way. He wanted to talk about meeting Katsu then meeting Tobi and going on a mission with him. He wanted to whisper about Gaara and say that he took the Ichibi because he didn't want Gaara to be hurt. He wanted to-

He wanted to ask him why he kept his last name a secret, why he decided to hurt him like that.

"Why?" Lee whispered, his throat tight as he trembled. He gripped Itachi's cloak even tighter as Itachi seemed to pause.

"Why did you lie to me."

"Lie?"

"Uchiha Itachi." Lee said, his voice almost cracking as he said that name. He felt Itachi tense and closed his eyes, feeling pain in his heart.

"...I didn't lie."

"No! You just did not tell me! You stopped Kisame from telling me! You-" Lee bit out, hitting Itachi's chest. He hit again but there was no strength behind it, "You did not tell me..."

"I couldn't."

"Why!?"

"Sasuke is my little brother."

Lee jerked in surprise but felt too unstable to look up. His hands shook and it felt hard to breathe. He stared at Itachi's cloak and trembled without saying anything for a long time. Then...

"When I heard your last name, it broke some part of me." Lee began and he felt Itachi twitch but he continued, "Since the first time I met the Kyuubi holder, I have had these specific shadow figures around me. I know they are only in my head but...they are real to me." He paused for a moment. "One of them is Kabuto, the one who...played with me the most. He was there but he never spoke, not really, and the others kept him from touching me. But when I learned...He would not stop talking."

Lee laughed a little, a light huff that held no happiness, only slight amusment.

"Did you know, one of Kabuto's favorite things to do...was to have me eat my own insides?" Lee asked though he knew Itachi wouldn't know. Itachi was so tense against him, like stone...it was starting to get funny.

"He kept talking and talking, I could not even escape in my sleep. It just made me remember more." Lee said then he sighed and admitted, "You know...it is not even that you carried that cursed name that hurt me the most. It was that you kept me from knowing you did. If you told me...I would have chosen to stay of my own free will. But now, it feels like I proved Kabuto right and he taunts me still. I made an Uchiha my anchor, I did whatever you asked of me and I was happy to do it but I did it without knowing. Maybe...maybe I am being child by saying it, but I wish you just gave me the choice."

Lee closed his eyes then slowly pulled away from Itachi. There was a second where Itachi didn't let go but then his arms fell and Lee sat up straight. He finally looked up at Itachi and gave him a little, tired smile. Then he huffed a little laugh again, amused by how pale Itachi looked and the tightness in his features.

"But one cannot change the past." Lee said then he changed the subject. "I am feeling rather tired right now and I am sure you are needed elsewhere."

Itachi's jaw clenched and he stared at Lee silently before nodding and standing. He went to the door but didn't open it yet. He stood there for a moment before saying "...I made a mistake and I lost something important. I know that." then he turned his head and stared right at Lee, a fire burning in his eyes, "But I won't just accept it. I will fix it, no matter what I must do."

Then he was gone, leaving Lee to stare at the closed door.

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"What will you do to fix this, Itachi-kun?...I do wonder."

"It doesn't matter."

Kabuto wasn't actually real, just a figment of his fractured mind...yet Lee still felt those hands caress his face before squeezing around his neck.

"You're still mine no matter what happens."

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