A/N: Hello everyone, I'm still here!
I've always wanted to finish this story, as well as its sequel 'A New Dawn'. Orochimaru and Itachi are among my favourites. They are complex characters, and at the heart of it all I do love a good romance. But when I tried writing again recently, I realised too many things had happened since my last update in 2017. My writing has changed and so have my ideas. I've decided to revise this story and post on AO3 from here on out. AO3 allows me to give feedback to reviews which is neat. It also allows me to post images. Dinkyicarus is an amazingly talented artist who has drawn ItaOro art works over the years, and they have given me permission to share these.
Thank you for all the support over the years. I'm still quite in awe that there are some of you who have stuck around for so long - as in, those who read the og Heartless. It's been more than a decade, like wow.
If you would like to read the continuation/revision of this story, my pseudonym on AO3 is the same, and the story is called 'wading in the dark'. Alternatively, you can PM me and I'll send you a link.
