Every meeting with Kabuto brought more exciting news about his experiments.

"Melo! The cells are finally, FINALLY spreading!"

"Melo! Those snakes that accepted the transplants are healthy, even after a month! The new cells have almost completely interspersed with their own."

"Melo! One of the snakes *looked* at me! Like, right at me! I think they recognized me."

I met every announcement with the same patience one might use to listen to a child, excitedly running up to tell you a very cool fact they just learned about their favorite dinosaur. That worked, until the day that he ran up to me while I was cleaning up my old cell, catching me in his arms. He squeezed me tightly, then held me out by my shoulders to look at me.

"Melo! You'll never believe this. One of the snakes sprouted an arm last night."

That one shook me.

"That's wonderful!" I answered, as cheerily as I could manage.

I began to feel cold inside, and I wasn't really sure why.

"It is! If it can successfully develop that arm fully, I'll be so much closer to growing it into a whole body. I feel so close."

"That's amazing. I'm so happy for you!"

He pulled me close, kissing me over and over again. I started trying to unravel the cold pit that was tangling inside of me.

But…if he succeeds, he'll get his teacher back. With Orochimaru, he's complete. Then what will happen to me?

I looked at him, joy shining from his eyes more genuinely than I could remember having ever seen before.

That doesn't matter. If this is what it takes to make him happy, then this is what will happen.

Though I tried to keep it hidden, my hesitancy must have shown on my face. He looked at me with concern, turning my head by my chin to examine me before he released me.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, dear."

He waved my response away with a disdainful flip of his hand, then pressed his forehead against mine. After a second, he stepped back.

"You don't seem to have a fever. I can go get an actual thermometer if you feel unwell."

"It's not that, I promise."

"Then what?"

I felt my throat constrict, and tears began to well up behind my eyes.

"I'm just so…so…happy…for you."

My voice broke. I brought my hands up to cover my face, then took a deep breath and held it for a while. When I exhaled, I added.

"I want nothing more than your happiness."

He pulled my hands away from my face, holding them in one of his. I sat back heavily on my old twin bed, and he followed. He laid down, tapping his chest to indicate that I should join him. I crawled over his body, adjusting myself on top of it. I buried my face in his neck, inhaling his scent deeply.

This brings me back, doesn't it? It'll probably be the best I can hope for, after Orochimaru returns.

I shuddered, tears rolling down my face. He rubbed my back gently for a moment, then spoke.

"This is just a guess, but since you're not telling me…you know I'll always want you with me, right?"

I shut my eyes, squeezing my arms around myself tightly.

"I've told you that I love you one hundred times, and I meant it more every time. You're mine, and that means you're safe, even when I've brought him back."

"I was just worried…"

"I thought so. You poor thing."

I held myself tighter, trying to nestle inside of his cloak.

Of course he'd say that now, but who knows what the future actually holds?

He sighed, then pushed me off of him slightly.

"I'll be right back, okay? I have something for you. I wanted to wait until after I had succeeded, but…I think this might be a better time."

I sat up, pulling my knees to my chest and wrapping my arms around them. I nodded at him, still sulking. He smiled at me, touseling my hair as he left. He returned in a moment, carrying a small box and a mirror.

"The object in this box is very important to me, Melo. It's…a kind of necklace."

"I've never really been much for jewelry."

"I know, but that's not quite what this is."

He held the box out to me, and I opened it. Inside it was a thick silver loop, fastened by a small heart shaped lock that would rest at my throat. I looked at it, taking it gently in my hands, then looked back at him. He reached into his cloak and pulled out a silver chain with a key strung on it. He let it dangle from his hand in front of me, tilting his head so that the light shining on his glasses obscured his eyes.

That gesture usually means he's nervous…I see it so rarely these days. What about a necklace has him so worked up?

"I'm not sure I understand. You got me a…"

"A collar. It's a symbol."
"A symbol of what?"

"Of…well, you know."

He shifted so that the light no longer hid his expression, looking at me expectantly. I had no idea what he wanted.

"Of what?"

"You're really going to make me spell things out?"

He glanced away, blushing slightly, then took a deep breath and faced me.

"It's a symbol of my love for you, Melo. And of our bond. There's no way to unlatch the collar without this key…unless you break it, of course. It's a symbol of..."

He let the sentence trail off, seemingly unsure of how to end it. I held the collar in my hands, turning it to see how the light reflected off of the smooth metal.

"Think of it like…"

He grabbed my left hand and squeezed my ring finger significantly before dropping it.

Oh.

"Some people prefer rings, I suppose. Please accept this collar from me, Melo. I promise to wear its key next to my heart for as long as it beats."

I struggled to breathe for long enough that I began to feel dizzy. My heart was pounding so hard I thought that my chest might burst. I nodded quickly, unable to speak and unwilling to wait until I could form full sentences again to answer him. I leapt up off the bed, crashing into him as he caught me in a hug. We landed in a careless pile on the floor. I pressed kisses all along his neck and his face, unable to regain my composure for several minutes. He accepted the onslaught of attention, smiling peacefully.

"I thought you might like a collar better too…"

"Please put it on me, Sir."

His hands shook as he took the collar from me, unlocking it with his key.

"Sit up, please."

I sat on my knees in front of him. He reached over me and laced it around my neck, clicking the lock into place in front of me.

"Perfect." he murmured.

He let it rest on my skin, then held up the mirror so I could see. I moved my hair out of the way, twisting to admire the collar. Its weight was just enough to be felt as I moved, just enough to remind me that it would always be there. I jumped on him again, knocking the mirror out of his hands. He caught me by the shoulders, then pushed me back to where I had been kneeling across from him.

"I'm excited too, but there's something I'd like to do now."

I sat back, trying to calm myself down. He took a kunai from his pocket, holding it in front of him.

"By this blade, I ask you to become blood of my blood. My beloved. I swear to love and protect you for as long as I have strength to hold this knife in my hand."

Before I could question his actions, he had taken it and slashed a line down his palm. He reached for my hand, and I laid it palm-up in his. His blood was warm as it coated the back of my hand, dripping down his arm.

No fair, I didn't have a chance to prepare something to say like that.

"Please, Kabuto, allow me to be yours. I want to aid you too, however I can, and to be with you always."

He held the kunai over my hand, resting the edge against my skin.

"This will sting. Are you ready?"

I nodded. He sliced a matching line along my own palm, and I winced and yelped as he did.

"There, there. Not so bad, right?"

I nodded. He turned my hand over, pressing our palms together. The blood intermixed, spilling over from our hands and dripping onto the floor. I let out a breathy sigh, unable to contain my joy.

"We are as one now, Melo. Please never forget that."

"I won't, I promise."

He clasped my bleeding hand in his and pulled me towards him, catching my lips in a kiss as soon as I was close enough. I melted against him, feeling all the anxiety from Orochimaru's possibly speedy return draining away with the drops of blood that dripped between us.