Sasuke came into the room that Akio and I were in. Akio looked up at him with noodles hanging from his lips. I giggled, set my food on the ground and walked up to him. I gave him and quick hug, which he briefly returned. I faced my brother who was smirking at me. He knew exactly who this raven-haired boy was.
"Onii-san, this is-"
"Sasuke, ne?" Akio interrupted and I pouted, but nodded. "It's a pleasure to meet you." Akio extended his hand and I nudged Sasuke to shake it. He did and I sighed.
"I came in here to tell you something." Sasuke said in a low voice. "If you're just toying with her...if you have another motive to be nice to her and you hurt her, I will end you." Sasuke threatened, releasing his grip on my brother's hand and I gasped.
"Sasuke-kun, this isn't-"
"It's alright, Onee-chan." Akio chuckled. He stood up against his restraints. "I have no intentions on hurting her, Sasuke. And if you break her heart, I will destroy you. Are we clear?" Sasuke smirked at the man.
"Don't tempt me on ending you sooner- I'd do it anyway." Sasuke dared and I started to get worried. All this testosterone and angst and anger and suspicion is going to hurt someone and, with my luck, it'll be me.
"Oh really? How about we take this outside and settle this now?" Akio beckoned. He and Sasuke held each others' gazes before they chuckled. "Not bad. I think I like you, Sasuke." I let out a breath.
"You guys are such jerks!" I said, punching them both in the arm. "You, out." I said to Sasuke before pulling him by his sleeve. I brought him to the door and punched his chest. "You're such a-"
"Don't be mean because you overreacted." Sasuke pouted.
"At least he likes you." I rolled my eyes.
"I like you." Sasuke smirked. I rolled my eyes and gave him and light peck on the lips before closing the door on his face.
"EW!" Akio choked. "My eyes!" He mimicked vomiting and I laughed.
"Shut up, jerk, you were the one giving me a heart attack!" I accused. "I thought my brother and my boyfriend were going to have a duel to the death or something! Don't scare me like that, baka." Akio held up his hands in defeat.
"Alright, alright." He sighed. "So, when will I meet the rest of your friends? Or your sensei, for that matter. He has to be pretty good, right? What was it, uh, Kakashi?" I nodded.
"Good memory." I complimented. "Where the hell did Kage-kun go? Come!" I commanded and the grey dog came out of no where. "You've got to stop disappearing like that, okay?" He yipped in response. "Good boy. Anyway, I still have to clear that with Kakashi-sensei. He's the one that determines whether or not you get out of here. I'd help if I could, but my sensei is...how do I put this?"
"A hard ass?"
"Basically." I laughed. "But seriously, he has a way with reading people, so it's best this way." I shrugged. Akio sighed and looked at the ceiling.
"Can I ask you what it was like?" He asked. Before I could ask what he was talking about, he specified. "What was it like being branded that way? That mark. The thing that's deep inside of you. What's it like?" I saw him shuffled in his restraints and I made a small smile.
"Let's see if we can get those off you, ne?" I offered, motioning to the restraints and he smiled back, nodding. I got up and walked out of the room, closing the door behind me.
I didn't notice that I was sweating until I heard the door click shut. Was I nervous or was I just warm? I wiped my brow with the back of my hand and cleared my throat. I looked around the observation room I was in and saw Kakashi. I sighed and walked over to him.
"Kakashi-sensei, could we-"
"No." He answered before I was done asking.
"Why not?"
"He could still be dangerous." Kakashi sighed and I groaned softly.
"Then that's my risk then." I said. "I trust him. That should be enough for now." Kakashi tottered in his stance.
"From what I could see, Akio doesn't seem intent on harming anyone, least of all you." Kakashi said and I smiled. "But, he could always be playing another angle. His interactions with you have gone from bad to good in a decent amount of time, but we might be pushing our luck." I groaned.
"What if I have Sasuke-kun and his Sharingan in there with me?" I asked, motioning to the silent raven in the corner of the room. "You don't have to, but it would-"
"I'll do it." Sasuke said, standing up. "Kakashi, let's just see what happens. If anything happens, we won't come back here. Right, Ayame-chan? You trust your brother with that much of a wager, don't you?" Oh, I see how it is.
"Absolutely." I nodded in monotone. "I'll bring in Suge-kun. Kakashi-sensei?" Kakashi groaned, but nodded anyway.
I went down the hallway and brought Suge back into the room with me. Kakashi briefly explained the situation and Suge wished me luck before going into Akio's cell. He muttered a warning into Akio's ear and unlocked his restraints. I nodded to him as he left the room and he tussled my hair.
Akio stretched his arms out and twisted his back until his spine popped in various places. I looked over at Sasuke who had his Sharingan activated and I sighed. Akio was touching his toes when I looked back at him and he sighed happily.
"Thanks, Onee-chan." He smiled. "Oh, nice eyes, Sasuke. Now, don't help me here, your eyes...Sharingan. Right?" Sasuke nodded.
"Good guess." He said. I nudged him lightly and sat back in my chair, knees cuddled into my chest.
"So, Onii-san." I said. "You wanted to know what it's like to live in the not-so-fabulous life of Ayame, ne?" I asked with a somewhat dark chuckle. "On an almost daily basis, a wannabe kunoichi terrorizes me when she doesn't realize I could snap her arm at any moment, but that's just me complaining." I laughed. Akio tilted his head.
"Need me to cut her or something?" He asked and I gasped.
"What? No! She's mine to cut, plus, you'll never leave if you keep threatening to cut people." I said and he laughed. "But seriously, this little mark hasn't really effected me until recently. I only learned a few days ago what it was. But the power? I always had more chakra than I should, but I never really noticed if I, myself, was stronger."
"So, you're just an average, wolf possessed girl, then." Akio laughed and I rolled my eyes. "How many people know aside from us four?"
"Five. Kage-kun." Speak of the dog and he shall sit on your lap. I scratched his ear as I continued. "Two of my senseis and that's it." I shrugged.
"Mm. Secrets." Akio said with a smile. I returned one. "Sorry I'm a lot more sassy than when we first met. I kinda have multiple personality. Stone cold killer who's never killed anyone and a teasing big brother."
"Ah, I gotcha." I said and giggled. Akio sat back in his chair and sighed deeply.
We started up conversations about multiple topics for the remainder of my visit. We shared stories about occurrences with our companions. Akio laughed when I told the story of Naruto almost drowning in two feet of water. After that tale was over, Kakashi signaled that it was time to go.
"Look, Onii-san, I'll talk to Kakashi-sensei about your confinement, but you have be a good boy while you're here, okay?" I said. He laughed, but nodded. "Hey, I'm serious, man. Be nice."
"Alright, I hear you." Akio said, standing up. "Can I hug my little sister before she leaves?" He asked, extending his arms. I giggled and hugged him back. He was really warm and smelled like grass after it rains. He kissed the top of my head and released me.
"I'll see you later." I waved him off after collecting the trash from the ramen containers. "Kage-kun." I called to him and he skipped next to me. "Bye, Onii-san."
"Later, Onee-chan." Akio waved. Sasuke, Kage and I walked out of the room.
"That was so amazing!" I said as the door shut. "Kakashi-sensei, you saw how much of an improvement that was, right!?" Kakashi sighed.
"You're being naïve." He informed me as we left the observation room. "I do see the improvement, but it's only in this situation. Remember to not let your guard down, Ayame." I nodded.
"Hai, sensei."
"And...maybe he could...be released soon." Kakashi said slowly as we exited the building. I beamed.
"A-Are you serious!? Oh my Kami, thank you so much, Kakashi-sensei!" I reflexively threw my arms around the man, hugging him tightly. Kakashi chuckled softly.
"Alright, alright." He said, patting my head. I was making him uncomfortable. I let him go and chuckled.
"Sorry. I'm just really happy. Will he be released tomorrow?" I asked and Kakashi nodded. "Wow. I can't thank you enough." Kakashi waved in dismissal.
"Don't worry about it." He sighed. "That's my job. Anyway, there are a couple things we need to discuss. Like his living arrangement."
"He can live with me." I said like it was the most obvious answer. "Duh."
"Are you crazy?" Sasuke asked. "Do you know how dangerous that is? He could try to kill you in your sleep." He was speaking in monotone merely because Kakashi was there. He's only got a soft spot for me because I'm special like that.
"That's why you'll stay with me until you can trust him like I do." I said, folding my arms across my chest. "And if you don't want to do it, I'll just live with him alone. Until he gets his own place, that is."
"Damn it, why are you so stubborn?" Sasuke muttered under his breath, but I heard him of course. "It's not an option, I have to stay with you."
"Aw, it's nice to know you care." I rolled my eyes. "What else needs discussion, Kakashi-sensei?"
"You can show him any of your jutsu." He said and I nodded.
"Of course not." I agreed. I assume that's all? Kakashi shrugged.
"For now. Just go home and prep Akio's arrival, I guess." Kakashi said before waving and disappearing. I sighed.
"I should get my stuff out of your place then." I said as we neared Sasuke's flat. "Are you going to pack too? You know since you'll temporarily live with me and all."
Sasuke just shrugged as he opened the door to his home. I walked in and Kage launched himself on the small couch. I chuckled and entered Sasuke's room. I gathered all my clothes that littered the floor and inserted them in my pack. After a few minutes of that, I got Kage's food and also put that in my pack.
I did this in silence as Sasuke packed his own bag of clothes. When he was done, the three of us left without a word. I wasn't exactly in a talking mood to begin with, so I had no problem with this. We slowly made it to my flat. The lack of conversation made the time seem slow.
I opened the door and breathed in the scent of tea and paper. That's exactly what my house smells like. I missed it. I sighed as I walked into my bedroom to unpack my things. I replaced the book I brought on a bookshelf in my room as Sasuke placed his pack on my bed.
"So now what?" He asked. I turned to him and leaned against the wall the was behind me.
"Well, there can't be a chapter without a little steam." I winked. Sasuke raised an eyebrow.
"What does that-"
"Just come here and kiss me." I whispered. Sasuke smiled and compelled to my wishes.
He walked over to me and laid his lips onto mine. I placed my hands on the back of his head and pulled him in deeper. We parted our lips in sync with each other. He pulled away and looked at me while he held me.
"I really like you, Ayame." He said. I noticed he dropped the honorific. I smiled.
"I really like you, too, Sasuke."