Chapter 2
He tugged again upon her foot.
In horror, she didn't even kick back. Itachi could be cruel.
Not even Sasuke thought Itachi was anything but sweet and nice, 'not a real Uchiha by any measure.'
Lies.
At no response, his fingers trailed up her leg to the haunch of her thigh and scratched as if tickling her. She kicked back on that one.
Itachi was evil.
"Should I help you?" Itachi asked, "Do you need help?"
Tickle.
She kicked again. Dammit!
"Do you need help, little one?"
Tickle.
She kicked and kicked and kicked.
"Ah, is that a yes? If you promise not to run away, I'll help."
She stilled.
"See, there's a good bunny."
He moved then, sitting upon the floor behind her where she could only see his shadow. Then large hands were upon her, around her waist and haunches.
Well, a lot more of her didn't fit than she thought.
She felt a tiny tug. Then a hard one.
"You are in a predicament."
The tug became more forceful and it felt like her waist was going to come off and she'd be half a rabbit soon. She let out a squeal and pop, she was free.
Well, free from the shelf. Instead she'd plopped into Itachi's lap, taking up pretty much all of it. Oh, why couldn't she have been a cute, tiny, little bunny?
She looked up; he looked down.
Her whiskers wiggled as she took a breath. The clean, sweet smell of mint and flowers had been him. She pressed a paw to his chest and sniffed some more. Sakura sniffed up his neck and into his hair. Not just mint, but peppermint. Not just flowers, but gardenias. Her favorite.
His chest rumbled as he chuckled and she dropped back down in surprise, body tense and ready to bolt. Her human side however, quickly overcame the animal. She just sniffed up Itachi Uchiha. She was in the Itachi Uchiha's lap.
Goodness he was a sight, this close up. His hair untamed by a tie and draping about him. And goodness what a position. His hands were placed just on her thighs. Oh goodness, gracious of—
He let go of her haunches, and gently raised a hand. Her animal instincts once again reacted to movement, but instead of grabbing at her, he left his hand curled with knuckles towards her. The animal relaxed just enough to lean forward and sniff.
Her whiskers pressed against his skin.
He moved so very slowly and the tips of his fingers pressed against her muzzle and then made their way to her head.
Then behind her ears, oh what a wonderful place for them to go. Her eyes closed as he got the right spot. Her right foot thumped.
He laughed openly at her, leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead.
"You are the cutest thing I've seen in a very long time." He leaned back up, nose touching hers.
AHHH! So close to a real kiss.
"So tell me, why would something so precious be interested in the dark arts, hm?"
RUN!
She tried to make an escape, but he was faster this time around. Wand in hand, she got half a leap in air and then just floated there, frozen.
His hand once again scratched her ear.
"Now, now, our deal had been going so well. The dark arts are not a normal thing to be interested in and I must confess, my great uncle's introduction to it really only makes sense to someone familiar with the arts already. He's not very good at introducing anything, let alone seducing a light magic user." Itachi touched her nose with the tip of his finger. "I wouldn't want you to be put off. It's a very complicated piece."
Complicated? Put off? Everyone referenced it in other books as the go-to resource; that Madara's work was true to the essence of the dark arts. She wasn't like all the other fourth years; she was already reading college textbooks and learning everything from literature to computer science from Coursera — passing all the classes she'd taken in the summer and earning several certificates to boot.
His wand twisted and she hovered to the ground until her body was released from the spell.
She immediately stood on her hind legs, cheeks puffing at his belittlement of her.
"Oh, did I insult you?" Itachi asked.
The non-confrontational bunny instincts rescinded deep inside as she puffed her chest like a human, hoping her eyes did look demonic.
"I meant nothing cruel by it."
Sure.
"I only wished to suggest better reading material. Perhaps 'A Loose Depiction of Magick and all the Arts' by our very own headmaster." He pointed down the aisle, "It's right there, aisle thirteen."
She turned her head to the side, nose in the air. She'd already read it.
"Hm? No?" He considered her.
"How about 'The Darken Soul: What Makes Evil Different from Dark and How to Defend Yourself' by Hashirama?" He pointed behind him with his thumb. "Aisle thirty-four."
She stuck her nose even higher and sniffed. She'd read that, too. She'd practically devoured everything on spell magic and craft in the non-restricted section last year, not to mention both Namikaze's and Hashirama's work were required reading for fifth years; she'd finished those by year 2.
"No, again? Has Professor Hatake already covered those in your DA class or perhaps we covered it last year sitting in the same room?"
She stiffened. Uh-oh. He was trying to discern her age.
"Ah, I see. Yes, I myself was just grabbing further reading for our term paper on the principles around magical discipline. Although, I can say with confidence that Madara isn't half as disciplined as he makes himself sound. He's an indulgent person."
Well, now he thought she was a sixth year. Great.
"Perhaps we can work on our term paper together? I was thinking of pulling the text of 'Life in Self-Exile' by Tsunade, myself."
She leveled him with a stare. Who was Tsunade? Well. It would throw off the scent, wouldn't it? Or would it?
"In terms of discipline, the healing sannin is the best. I've seen her work in person. Her magic is so controlled, she can heal without uttering a spell for it. Even when faced with the darkest of curses."
Healing magic. Now, that would be useful, especially in war. People were bound to get hurt. But she'd already memorized the majority of healing spells in the general library — what would it mean to not have to worry about the right spell for attaching a tendon versus removing a curse? Or was it just the woman knew how to silently cast?
"Shall we?" Itachi motioned towards the leather armchair in the corner.
She shook herself. Ok, she'd learn them both. Dark magic and healing magic. The best defense was a good offense, and if that failed, having a backup plan when she got hit.
He moved first, sitting upon the chair without the typical grace he had in the tower. Instead his ettique was lost, and he sat crossed-legged. His wand twisted and a book flew into his hands. It was thin, much thinner than the tome she'd been wanting to pull from the shelves.
He patted his leg. "Coming?"
Well, that was quite the invitation. Bunny instinct of self-preservation was thrown to the wolves with that.
With a hop and a bound she almost made it onto the armchair. Instead only the top most part of her body made it and the heavier bottom half felt like it tugged with a force greater than gravity. She scrambled to stay upon the chair arm, in fact her bottom feet touched the ground, but she had no claws and her paws slipped on the smooth leather. She attempted to bound with her back feet but still couldn't scramble up and over.
It was mortifying.
Itachi laughed, grabbed her by the scruff of her neck, and once again she found herself in his lap. Well, the book was in his lap, she was actually tucked into his side, his arm thrown around her and fingers on her ears. She nestled into the warmth. With her head laying on his leg she could read the text.
"Comfy?" he asked.
She lifted her head and looked up at his face, his smile small and sweet. She could stare at it all day. But that would be creepy wouldn't it? She gave a yawn and turned back to the text and rested her head down. She kicked her foot a bit. If he offered, well she would make herself comfy. Thank you.
"Let me know when you've read the page," Itachi chuckled, fingers returning to her head.
It wasn't really a book, not in terms of theory or learning. Instead it was a journal kept by a witch who'd imposed herself in exile of her homeland, traveling to foreign countries and learning different healing magic. Seeing if there might have been a way to save her younger brother had she known better.
Sakura shoved at Itachi's hand each time she finished a page. He read faster than her, always turning the page and not taking any longer.
By the end, Tsunade had found a way. But of course, her brother had long since passed away. The journey, more sorrowful than happy.
The story itself was a treasure trove of techniques and daily living. Itachi had been right, the woman was disciplined, but not in the way a muggle would define it.
For starters, Tsunade had been incarcerated for both drunkenness and gambling and continued to be so even at the end of the book. But how she treated her magic, now that was fascinating. Every morning she rose before daybreak to meditate on spells, even with a piercing hangover. Then, when the sun shone upon her in the morning rays, she cast those spells. Healing. Light magic. At least in some sense.
Every night, right before dusk, she did something similar. Focusing on healing curse magic. 'For one must understand the darkness to cure it.'
She kept a routine, an inner resolve within her that Sakura reflected was close to her own. Tsunade wasn't as self-centered as Sakura though, her desire still to save her brother and others. Sakura just wanted to live to see the next day.
They made quick work of the thin journal. But what it lacked in length it made up for in content. Dawn had not yet broken, twilight just beginning by the time they finished and Itachi casted a tempus.
When he closed the book, Sakura jumped down to let him up, for midst reading she'd shifted again to get comfortable and had ended up sprawled across him, diagonal and sideways. He was very good at stomach scratches. 10/10 would sit on him again.
She flushed. Now that she thought about it, the idea he'd been petting her underbelly had a lot of inappropriate tones. Not that said rabbit had cared. Or really Sakura if she were willing to be honest.
"Well, thank you for your company, little rabbit," Itachi said. "But it is time we take our leave."
He opened the giant oak doors, relocked them by the wall such that the library remained open to all. When he headed towards the tower, she waved an ear in goodbye, before turning down the other corridor.
For one, she didn't want him to know she was Ravenclaw, too. For another, she still needed to get that book.
She flopped at an amble pace until she turned down the corridor. There she waited, counting each breath until sixty. Then she peeked around the corner, pressing half her face against the cold stone wall to be as small as possible.
Itachi was gone. Good.
She flopped back to the library. With war on the horizon she'd little choice. She'd read the book, decide if dark magic warranted any further delving and if not, she'd focus on healing. Regardless though, she'd begin Tsunade's nightly rituals, morning ones too if she returned to the dorm at a reasonable hour.
She made her way back to the restricted section, slipped through the bars with ease and hurried to the shelf. She poked at the book with her paw; it came a bit free but budged no more. Sakura made another attempt, she wanted it out to see if it would scream. She heard some books here did that. Nothing.
She was just about to become human, take her chances, yank it out and stuff the book into her bag, when a voice sounded behind her.
"You're a sneaky one."
She bolted, but hands got her first. She was scooped up and held by her shoulders before the glowing red eyes of Itachi Uchiha, his bloodline magic memorizing and seeing all. She'd seen Sasuke use it to memorize books. Every muggle thing in her screamed at the sight of them looking at her, though. She wriggled and squirmed, trying to use all twenty pounds of fat to get him to put her down. She even tried to bite. But he held firm.
"You realize, books such as those are monitored with spells. You pull it from the shelf, every teacher here will know you have it. You don't know the spell to undo it, that is obvious."
She froze in her movement.
Itachi smiled, "They'll start asking questions. Primarily how did you bypass the anti-student wards Minato set up around the gates edge. At best, they'll consider you a warding expert. At worst though… Have you registered your animagus form, my friend?"
Her paws quivered.
Oh no.
He moved her closer to his body and wrapped an arm around her to alleviate her dangling weight.
She looked up at him. What would he do? Turn her in?
His voice dropped to a whisper. "There is more than one copy at Hogwarts. Do you know the right people though?" He released his firm grip, just cradled her gently as his smile crept larger.
Her head cocked, she closed her eyes trying to think of anyone she knew who had any inkling for the dark. Not really. Kakashi had laid down the law early. Dark Magic practitioners without his mentoring would be punished. They weren't allowed to study it until sixth or later, not at all if Kakashi determined they were unfit. The dark required a certain temperament.
Sixth or seventh? Who did she know that was a sixth year?
No one really. Well, Kisame in Hufflepuff, who was absolutely terrifying. She knew him from her muggle neighborhood. They went to the same dojo, although she was in the higher-level classes. Likely because he didn't memorize poomsaes.
In general, he was a gangster and they acknowledged each other with head nods. Usually he was too busy pounding the face of some other thug behind an alley to make conversation. They'd barely spoken to one another. Minus of course, this last time they'd ridden the same bus together to get to King's Crossing. Normally her parents took her, but sadly Auntie Kaede had gotten sick.
"So what, you're a… ," Kisame had tapped his chin, "Fourth year?"
"Yeah," she'd smiled.
"Sixth for me. One more and I'm out of there. Sheesh, the magickal weirdness is too backwards for me."
She'd actually been relieved. "I was starting to think I was crazy."
And they'd laughed together after. Talking about everything weird, especially the lack of pens and binders. Parchment, really? It was refreshing and reassuring that someone else had come to the same conclusion as her.
So Dark Magic could be his thing. And being as he'd little reverence for muggle law let alone magical one, he'd probably be someone safe to trust. But he was a muggle-born, which put him at a disadvantage. While he might have bought a copy in Knockturn Alley, he didn't seem like the studious type. A big giant book like this one he'd probably use as a door stop or hit someone with. Not really his weapon of choice, but it would make do like the lid of the garbage can she'd seen him use once.
Who else?
Oh.
She opened her eyes, pressed a paw upon Itachi's shoulder and booped his nose with her own.
Itachi was an Uchiha. He had said 'great uncle.' He was insinuating he had it. Duh.
His grin turned wicked like he was playing with her foot again. "I suppose you'd be permitted to use my copy, but," he initiated nose touches this time. "It must never leave my dormitory unless carried by my person."
Even his breath was minty. Wait? What?
His grip tightened and this time he carried her towards the tower with him.
Her heart pounded, not exactly from fear. Was he offering for her to be in his room?
The door didn't even finish asking its riddle before Itachi said, "quill." Then he stepped through the opening. He didn't pause, walking right up and into the sixth year boys dormitory.
She trembled. She'd actually been in Hufflepuff's male dormitory before, but only during waking hours. Itachi hadn't even hesitated though, in they went.
The differences were apparent even at the blue curtains. The shared room didn't have clothes everywhere, dirty or clean. Instead there were books. Books in corners, books on shelves, books under beds, books on chairs. And paper, scrolls and quills scattered everywhere. A single tabby cat raised its head out of a black cauldron, perched upon a pile of more books, to greet them, green eyes glittering in the dying moonlight. It gave a lazy yawn before going back to sleep.
In fact there was only one bed and desk in the entire dormitory that didn't have an unorganized and messy library atmosphere and that is where Itachi took her.
His small area was neat, books only on the shelves along with a picture frame. Only a closed inkwell and quill upon the top of the desk. He placed Sakura upon the tabletop. A good thing it was clear, for she took up the entire surface.
Sakura blinked at the picture upon the shelf above her. Itachi was carrying his younger brother on his back, a smile on his face, Sasuke asleep until they got closer. Then the child bolted awake and almost toppled Itachi over with panic.
Awww.
Itachi pulled out his trunk and unbuckled the latches.
She peeked down and over his shoulder. Well, that explained Itachi's neatness. His entire trunk was a library, more books than those in this very room! The expansion charm looked to go far beyond what she could observe. Most of the books had no writing on their spines; instead they were in worn leathers of various dull hues of green, red and brown. He used his wand to accio a large volume without speaking and then closed the lid.
Sakura sat up on the desk, whiskers twitching in anticipation.
But instead of setting the book on the desk—not that there was a room left with her sitting on it unless he squashed her with it—he instead opened his bedside curtain, sat and then laid back. Book in his lap, he patted the spot next to him.
Innerly she'd die later, book time.
She looked several times, butt bunching up ready for the leap. Well. She made an attempt. But her aim… it really had more to do with being a rabbit. Depth perception was a tricky thing in this form. She wasn't this clumsy as a human. In fact, she made a damn good beater in quidditch pickup matches. Needless to say, she missed.
Before she could clatter upon the ground, thump and wake the other males in the room, Itachi whispered a spell and used his wand to levitate her to the bed.
Her ears drooped. So embarrassing.
But he set her down by his leg and then canceled the spell.
She was at his hip in an instant, nose opening the book.
"Yes, yes, it's just a book, don't get so excited."
"Please don't talk to your dick, Itachi. Nobody wants you to be weirder. Just wank and move on. Quietly. Please."
Sakura bolted up, forelimbs in the air, ears twitching trying to place both the sound and where it had come from. One of the beds obviously. But which one?
Itachi flicked his wand and uttered a silencing spell, but he didn't shut the curtains.
In the pale light from the full moon from the window beside the bed, she could see a hint of flush upon his cheeks. "Apologies for Sasori's crassness."
He opened the book, and began to flip the page to the introduction when she pounced on his hand. She put all her weight down to stop him, while also leaning her head closer so she could read the cursive hand writing on the inside cover.
'You are as light as dawn, Itachi. I suspect no words will ever convince you to dive into the depths of your soul and navigate the cavern without a lamp, but you'd make such a powerful dark wizard I am compelled to try. - With love, Madara'
Madara had hand gifted his nephew this book. The actual author. Being that it was Madara's book, would that be narcissistic or sweet?
Sakura retracted her head and weight, then nudged Itachi's hand with her muzzle.
"Ah yes, you are going to do this all night aren't you."
She laid back down beside him, propping her head upon his stomach. She kicked with her foot.
He turned the page to the introduction.
Except, it wasn't just an introduction. The same cursive writing could be found in the top heading space. It was more of the same, that Itachi would make an excellent dark wizard should he choose to be one. If Itachi had any questions, whatsoever, Madara would take personal time from work to help him on his journey.
So it was sweet. Aww.
As time went on though, the handwritten notes elaborated on each page in the book. They were clarifications, footnotes, other books to look into or personal experiences from Madara's life.
Amazing.
So much better than the copy in the library.
Madara had handwritten annotations in this book entirely for Itachi, to convince him.
The contents even without the notes were fascinating and with the personal touch, she could barely stop reading.
Around chapter five, just when it was diving into the practicality of spells, she kicked Itachi's side but no more page turns occurred.
She turned to glare but stopped and blinked instead.
Itachi was asleep.
She made an attempt to turn the page herself, but triggered movement from her sleepy host. Who then proceeded to mistake her for a stuffed animal. She found herself grabbed and tugged away from the book and then her large haunch used as a pillow for Itachi's cheek.
A sleeping Itachi was a bit of a sight.
His stress lines seemed to disappear. His lax face, softer. Less of a man and more of a child.
She turned her head away from the sight, feeling just a bit guilty. Well, she herself was also tired. She gave a yawn. Maybe she'd meditate on some spells like Tsunade and if she fell asleep… Well, Itachi's bed was pretty comfy as was the warmth from his hands and cheek.
She hadn't planned for this, but well, this was quite nice. What was the saying, never look a gift horse in the mouth? Every other girl in Ravenclaw Tower would die for this moment.
As she closed her eyes, she pondered dark magic. The whispers of shadows. The cavern of one's soul. What made dark magic work and how it differed from the light. Were they truly entity-like, as Madara suggested? Could one heal with dark magic? Cellularly speaking, UV rays were damaging to cells but vitamin D was restorative to the body. Darkness like in a sensory deprivation tank was used for treating a variety of ailments and was also considered restorative. Studies were showing that the human circadian rhythm was a part of a healthy, balanced life. Was there such a thing as balanced magic? Must one choose a focus between light and dark? Could light spells be used with more power during daylight and dark, at dusk? So many questions and no answers.
She was jealous of Itachi. He had someone offer to take time to answer all of his questions. Repeatedly, Madara would circle a passage and write: Ask me about this and I can give more details.
Sakura Haruno, though, had no one in the magical community. No one she could trust. Not with dark magic, not with her animagus ability.
Even with Itachi's cheek pressed to her outer thigh, she felt alone. Just as alone as the night she'd spent staring into the flames in the common room after reading the newspaper clippings of the last war, contemplating her name written in blood that bound her to the will of a country.