I recently rediscovered "Sun, Moon and Talia", an early Italian version of the Sleeping Beauty fairytale, online. Crispin Freeman, the god send of a man who voices Itachi in English, loves the tale that he has a video on YouTube where he read the Grimm's version, "Briar Rose". In short, "Sun, Moon and Talia" was such a dark story filled with magic, sleep sex (oh yeah, shudders there, obviously) as well as a jilted spouse who plots revenge and fails, and happy ending, if you can even call it that. It inspired me to bring this to life.

This is an AU, a dark tale combined with elements of the familiar story we know. It's notably a period fantasy drama. I guess even though I just said it, here are some triggers guaranteed to make you flinch and sit tightly. I do NOT condone any of that in here, so please do not flame me.

Disclaimer: nothing of Naruto belongs to me. And all chapter titles are named after compositions by TaiGekTou on YouTube.

Chapter One

The Writ of Dreams

Long ago was a village hidden within foliage, hence the name of Konohagakure. It was established after decades of war, when two clans were brought together to end the turmoil, but there were still enemies on fronts.

Soon after, other clans and eventually civilians would come and learn to understand, harmonize and trust. Peace was a sought after dream made a reality.

One of the powerful families which was linked to the founding of Konohagakure was called the Uchiha clan. Even now were they influential and allies of the ones who abided by the other prominent clan, known as the Senju. Currently in charge was Minato Namikaze, the student of the Third Hokage - Hokage being the title of the village leader - and his wife was a member of the Uzumaki clan who were distant relatives of the Senju.

The current head of the Uchiha was Fugaku, a respected war hero in the Third Great War in which the five nations were in great turmoil once more. But a few years prior to the conflict, his firstborn son Itachi entered the world.

On the day of Itachi's birth, the legendary ninja visited a miko within the clan - the last of her kind - who foretold the newborn heir's destiny at the command of his father who was desperate to secure a future for the Uchiha. The woman, blinded, spoke it crystal clear and away from the rest of Fugaku's kin, save for his wife Mikoto present and cradling their child with one arm, her other hand holding her husband's.

"Your son will be the hope for the clan. He will usher a great time of peace for us all - and the village as a whole. This path to that destination will not be devoid of hardship and tragedy, but that is not the half of it." With bated breath did they hear the rest of it, the child stirring with a little grunt but not waking...and the impact to hit them was great as a typhoon.

"Itachi will one day bear a child half his own blood and half an enemy he will tame by his own hand. A unity between two oppositions shall forge a bond through blood and bring a new generation that shall be a pillar to all."

Tekka, a distant cousin and member of the police force, was the first to voice his dismay, because how could it be possible for a MALE to -?! Fugaku silenced him with a glare of murder. It was then and there that the head raised his voice firmly to him and long-haired Inabi who sniffed in utter disgust.

"No one is to breathe a word about this to anyone."

From then on, the couple and a couple close friends who came to pay their respects would only know about this prophecy - and that the young heir would never have to be aware. It would be kept safe from the rest of their brethren for strategic safety reasons.

The question remained, however, as the knowledge of Itachi's strange condition was kept closely guarded between Fugaku, Mikoto, the soothsayer and the two cousins. Fugaku was ferociously determined to protect his son and successor, even keep him from the company of men in that sense. Homosexuality was considered a taboo, unless you could keep it secret, in other clans and families, but in the Uchiha, two men as well as two women together was naught and impure, unlike marrying distant cousins to continue the Sharingan line - an ocular ability which made them superior and second to the Hyuuga clan. A few times the Uchiha could marry outside, for political reasons necessary.

However, as the years passed, Itachi found no interest in women or men, marking a relief over the latter but concern at the former. Notably, finding a bride for his heir wasn't a major concern as fighting the Third Ninja World War came to be. The Five Great Nations began to crumble as smaller countries began to clash with each other as well as ninja worlds. At only four years old, Itachi was one of many young children to be thrust into the bloodletting battles when full-grown Shinobi were shorthanded. For his young eyes, war was a living hell.

Fugaku told him war was where you had to kill in order to survive. It was then that the innocent child swore that there would NEVER be any more bloodshed like this. But his mental purity died that day. His childhood taken away from him in a time of war.

Barely two years when the Third War ended - Minato Namikaze who was the hero became the next Hokage - a second son of Fugaku and Mikoto was born. He was christened Sasuke, after the great warrior who was a father of Hiruzen Sarutobi...but the joy wasn't witnessed more than in Itachi, who became an older brother on that day.

He fell in love with his baby brother from then on, swearing to protect him if their parents couldn't always be there for them.

~o~

Itachi Uchiha proved to be the pride of the clan, but few cared to see the heavy weight if they bothered to look into his eyes when they were not displaying his Sharingan.

As the years passed upon the ending of the third war, Itachi grew into a powerful, handsome young man who made the girls fall at his heels and became the envy of fellow male ninja. His raven hair grew out past his shoulders and reached his waist, required to be tied below his neck. His eyes were dark as night, underlined with slants to give him the appearance of a weasel, which his name translated to mean. His body was lean but sculpted like the warrior he was. By the time he was thirteen, he was a prodigy in the eyes of the village and his kin.

But inwardly, he was not happy.

He was placed under immense pressure by his father to do nothing but his best to ensure the future of the Uchiha clan, in an era where clan expectations were valued above individuality. As a result, he was a prisoner in his own blood.

Part of his destiny had been his own choosing, because of his younger brother whom he loved more than anything and wanted to protect - for now - from the harshness of the unrest and ninja way of life. There were times of peace at the moment, until new conflicts would arise. Itachi loved his village just as equally that his lifelong vow was to maintain the peace and order with his comrades. Then one day, Sasuke and the other children of his time would NEVER know the horrors he'd seen.

Another child his brother's age was the son of the Hokage, Naruto. Sasuke's first real friend who had begun as a rival. He was another Itachi would protect with his fiber.

~o~

"Sasuke - that boy will get it for being late again," Fugaku grumbled at the dinner table that night, when eighteen-year-old Itachi sat with him and Mikoto who was heartily preparing the meat and rice porridge for dinner over the fire pit. "Itachi, it's one thing for you to be late unwillingly from a mission, but with that brother of yours, he's not yet fit to be out as you had been, so when he walks through that door -"

He was a man enough to stand up to the one who sired him - and sheltered him much of his life - but without directly insulting him and getting lashed against one of the poles which supported this hut they lived in. They might be important ninja, but the samurai and nobility lived above them and had so much more. "Father, I understand your reasoning. Perhaps he was training overtime by mistake. It can happen to anyone - just like me."

"Yes, darling," Mikoto said, whirling the wooden spoon in the creamy substance which brought some chicken to the surface. "He'll be home before you know it."

Fugaku took what they both said to heart, but that did not mean he would let this slide easily.

On par, when the sun had all but vanished below the horizon, the bamboo doors opened, and in walked the youngest Uchiha who had bundled himself good and made it in time for the winter weather to be on the horizon. If he were to even consider any more training with his best friend, then he had to dress up warm and keep it indoors, but then that would mean worries about future snowstorms. Most of everyone never ventured out in the storms, because they slowed down or killed everything in their paths. Activity was limited save for important missions and emergency tasks for survival of the peasantry.

"About time, boy." Sasuke's strong Uchiha line gave him the ravenesque hair, though it was short, spiked up the back and tinted with midnight blue, having the features from their mother, whereas their father had dark brown hair and stern features. "What were you doing this time?"

"Training with Naruto," Sasuke answered, working hard to not let his frustration show. "Both he and his father say I'm getting better, if only you were there to see, Father."

"I told you, Sasuke, I wish I could make the time, but it gives me relief that you have someone to see that you're advancing when I'm not here," Fugaku said with a sigh. "Forgive me that you're disappointed, but that's the way it is." He picked up the cup of sake before himself and took a sip before clearing his throat. "If it makes you happy, I can supervise you when I return from the mission to Kirigakure."

This made Sasuke's face light up a little, but he was also on his guard in case that promise was broken, because it wasn't the first time and would never be the last - same with Itachi the elder. He always unwillingly did that even now, ever since he started taking real missions when he came of age. He and his younger sibling used to be so much closer, but it made him happy that Sasuke didn't fault him for anything.

"Father, perhaps you should reconsider and allow me to go alone on the mission with Kakashi and the others. After all, it's been a long time since you even got to know your other son. You can think of an excuse to the Hokage without betrayal. He's very fond of all of us."

~o~

They were safely away from their homeland, having stowed away on a ship a year ago to come here. Home was too dangerous for them to linger and eventually become prey. Even here, they would have enemies, which meant they had to travel about in disguise, blend in with the crowds to survive.

He was perfectly comfortable living in the trees, beneath the trees, or anywhere that called for it - especially the caves beneath the hot springs if there were any. Which were perfect for the winter climate, and they were on the horizon with that.

"My lady, it's a good thing we found the hot spring should the temperatures become deadly. I say we head down below at this very moment," he told the young woman, not speaking of the real reason, when she knew better and chose to defy him anyway. Just to get them the necessities which were the millet she acquired from the farmer whom they had both done honest work for. They were always moving place to place, never staying in one spot for too long. He had been born in this environment, but this had changed her way of life which had all but been devastating. But she would learn to adapt in the future, with his help. And as long as he had Samehada on hand, no one would get near her.

She could also take care of herself just fine, having been the daughter of a great lord and retired samurai warrior. Should bandits come her way - as they often did back in Kirigakure - she would melt them down into molten rock herself.

"Too bad when a storm isn't coming anytime soon." Lady Mei had the equipment needed on her back; they would have to live off of what winter fish they could find, and it was difficult to find any in the rivers and streams when certain parts would be frozen to prevent them from fishing by hand. It also meant they would have to find an inn in the future, or a commoner's hut to stay until they moved on. At least we are set for the winter.

Every day life back in Kirigakure was the same: people fighting over feared powerful bloodlines, and it was never-ending survival. Lady Mei of the Terumi household had been a victim of those circumstances, and a year ago, it was taken from her in a cruel twist of fate: in the form of her father and her fiancé who fought to protect her. Which left her younger sister enduring a fate worse than death; she hardly had a decent night's sleep, often dreaming of that...

Which had left Kisame Hoshigaki himself and his comrades to be at her side when they were outnumbered, left with the choice of standing with her and dying, or killing her as proof of loyalty to their "new lord". Because she stood up to the conqueror while her younger sister was unable to.

He chose the former, but escaped with her on his back, having help with only a few remaining fellow retainers who died aiding him and their lady. Now it was just the two of them and his Shark Skin Blade.

He took in the beautiful woman with her eyes which were green as summer grass, and her long hair red as fire which had once been so long it touched her ankles; now it was hacked to the base of her neck and tied there. A man would just die from a bleeding nose or a blown up heart at a female like her, and Kisame himself fought the urge more times than he could count. She was his to guard with every inch of his life, not someone to be hungry for like some animal, even though certain features on his face gave him the appearance of a certain predator from the sea.

Who in their right mind would even be interested in a beast like him?

His thoughts were interrupted when his ears picked up the distant sound of subtle snapping and soft padding in the grass. He knew that anywhere, and the lady halted with him when he did, turning around and putting a hand to her waist where her short sword was just as he reached for the handle of Samehada.

"I believe...we may have some company."

Combo of earlier mentioned period fantasy/drama as well as canon, so I hope that it makes sense so far.

Review, please. :)