Yay! Here it is Chappie 10. I must say, I got this one out much quicker than my last chapter. Thanks to all of my reviewers!

Konoaha: Don't worry, that probably will be the pairing. Thanks for actually reading that part of the last chapter!

Kawaii-Hisui: Who knows...Maybe it can, and you just cannot understand it As for Sasuke's room, that's answered, at least a VERY VERY VERY tiny bit in this chappie

Moonshadow8: Yes, she is opening up a little more, isn't she>.

NekoGuyFan: You're correct. Something is going to happen at the festival! I just haven't figured out what;

Cocoa-latte: Don't worry! Here's the next chapter for you.

This chapter is dedicated to my friend, codename JJ>.

Ch. 10

Sasuke walked into the house, closing the door behind him and sighing. He had been stuck in Tsunade's office for at least 3 hours while she caught him up on all that had happened, and by the time he had been allowed to leave, it was getting dark. He pulled off his shoes before stepping into the hall, and then froze, finally paying attention to his surroundings. Everything was clean, and not just pick-up-your-room clean. The house was sparkling. He blinked.

"Aori! Where are you?"

"In the kitchen!" Sasuke chuckled a little when her head poked out the doorway. Her hair was coming loose from its braid, sticking to her face in some spots from the heat of the kitchen, and there was a bit of flour just below her eye. Walking into the kitchen, his eyebrows raised.

"And here I thought that you had cleaned the house…Not made it worse." There were pans and bowls and utensils piled in the sink, and bits of flour, dough and other things all over the counters. Aori glared at him.

"I cleaned the kitchen first. I just used it a lot after finishing all of the other rooms." Sasuke chuckled again, and then, not being completely sure of what made him do it, he reached out a pulled a strand of hair off her face. Aori froze immediately, the knuckles on her hands white, her eyes letting fear flash across their purple surfaces. Sasuke saw this, and drew back, looking anywhere but at her, with a slight red tinge on his cheeks.

"Sorry… I forgot that you-

"It's alright… Just please warn me next time…" Sasuke let out his breath, relieved that she wasn't mad at him.

"All right, I will… So, what's for dinner?" Aori relaxed again, and then smiled at his question.

"A recipe from a magazine that I found buried in the attic… It's called 'American Cooking'… A few looked interesting, so I tried them. These are called hamburgers," She pointed to the brown patties of beef nestled between two pieces of bread, "and these are called French fries." She proceeded to pull out a plate and lay a hamburger and some golden-baked potato slices on it, handing the plate to Sasuke. He looked at the food.

"Ummm, are you sure that this is safe to eat?" He poked at the hamburger with a cautious finger. He missed Aori's glare, and only realized he had offended her when a hot fry hit the side of his face, making him yelp.

"JEEZ! What was that for!"

"I made the food. Of course it's safe to eat." Sasuke raised his eyebrows again at her boast, but bit into the meat anyways. His eyes widened as his taste buds were blown away. The meat was juicy and tender, and it tasted like Aori had added garlic in at some point giving it a rich, hearty flavor.

" 'is is goo-…" Sasuke tried to say 'This is good' but his mouth was too full of meat to make out all of the proper syllables. Aori smiled at his mumbled complement, then sat down and began to eat as well.

When dinner had been eaten, and the kitchen cleaned, Aori headed out back, into the cool spring breeze, the smell of spices on the wind. She jumped up into an old oak tree and sat down, unbraiding her hair and letting it blow since she was alone. She leaned against the warm trunk of the tree and smiled softly when leafy branches tickled her face and legs.

"Stop that now, and maybe I can take care of those caterpillars eating your leaves…" The tree's branches pulled away, and Aori stood up on the branch, climbing higher, pulling certain branches to her every now and then to pull caterpillars from the leaves. She ended up falling asleep, nestled in the branches of the tree, never noticing the lit window on the second floor.

Sasuke had retreated to his room after helping Aori clean up the kitchen. He shut and locked his door behind him, turning on a lamp to reveal sparse furnishings. There was an elegant bed in the corner, covered with silken blue sheets, and a single TV across from that. But the TV screen had been broken long ago. Sasuke looked at it, remembering…

"GOD DAMMIT! THEY CANCELED MY SHOW!"

Sasuke watched silently as Itachi threw a kunai through the screen, causing the circuits in the TV to sizzle and burn out. He stared at his brother with onyx-black eyes. He didn't move until his mother and father walked into the room.

"Just WHAT is going on here!" Their father was livid, as he looked from the two boys to the now broken TV. Itachi quickly pointed at Sasuke.

"It was Sasuke father… He was watching a show, when it was cancelled suddenly, and he threw a kunai threw the screen." Sasuke just blinked his large eyes again, knowing that it was useless to protest. He had learned long ago that Father was more likely to believe Itachi. He just stayed quiet, taking his punishment without complaint. Truth be told, his heart had already begun to close up slightly, building a protective wall ever since his brother had begun to accuse and abuse him…

Sasuke blinked, coming out of his mind to realize that his hands were shaking slightly. He grimaced at his sign of weakness, shoving his hands into the pockets on his shorts. A flash of deep red outside caught his attention. He made his way to the window and halted, staring. Aori had climbed up the tallest, biggest, oldest oak tree in the yard, and looked like she was…talking to it. Sasuke shook his head, hard.

"That can't be… Trees don't have the power of awareness." Doing a double take, he shook his head in disbelief. Aori was truly talking to this tree. As he watched, she climbed up into the higher branches of the tree, appearing to pull of small insects from leaves every now and then. He realized that she had unbraided her hair, and it was much longer than it looked, reaching her heels very easily when there was no wind.

He watched her for another half hour or so, until she curled up in the branches and fell asleep. He sighed, then left his room, heading down the stairs and out into the back gardens. Walking up to the tree, he jumped to the first branch he could reach and then began to climb. After a few minutes, he frowned, for Aori didn't seem any closer. He took a closer look and realized that the tree was lifting the branch she slept on higher and higher.

Sasuke let out a frustrated huff, then shook his head, thinking himself crazy for what he was about to do.

"Venerable oak, you have my guest nestled in your branches. I would be very grateful if you would lower her down, so that I may take her to her room." He blinked as the oak seemed to shiver, and the branches lowered. Within a few seconds, Aori was level with Sasuke. He gently picked her up off the branch, and then jumped down, carrying her inside. He paused at one point, letting out a weak chuckle.

"I talked to a tree…"

As he was walking, Aori turned in his arms, murmuring softly and burying her face into his chest. Sasuke could feel his face heating up, but luckily, he had reached her room, and he quickly lay her down on the bed. He backed away, his footsteps soft, closing her door behind him, then headed down the hall and disappeared into his own room.

A beam of light fell across Aori's eyes and she frowned, pulling the bed covers over herself.

Wait a minute…Bed covers!

She sat straight up, looking around frantically. After a minute, she realized that she was in her room in Sasuke's house. She frowned, clearly remembering that she had fallen asleep in the old oak's branches. Puzzled, she stood from the bed and walked to a wall, placing a gloved palm on it.

"Do you know how I wound up in my bed?" The house laughed a little at her question, then replied that its master, the Uchiha had carried her in. Aori gave her thanks and then slowly drew her palm back, a thoughtful look in her eyes. She had thought that she was dreaming last night, when she felt warmth, and the smell of… she smiled when she recognized it… peaches.

She walked to the door, opening it before catching sight of herself in the mirror. Getting a good look at her reflection, she grimaced. Her hair was horribly tangled, and there were little sticks and leaves everywhere.

"Stupid hair…" She grumbled to herself, then grabbed a brush off of the dresser and began to tackle the mess.

Sasuke walked from his room in his dark blue pajamas, yawning. He walked down the hallway in a lazy manner, passing Aori's room so that he could get to the bathroom. Just past her doorway, he halted, turning around to peek back into Aori's room. Aori was sitting on her bed, grumbling to herself. She was brushing her hair, but having a hard time doing it. It seemed that she had difficulty in reaching all the way to the end of her red locks. Sasuke laughed a little, then stepped into the room, clearing his throat. Aori jumped a little, then looked up at him, her cheeks turning a little pink.

"Um, would you like some help?" Aori's actually paled a little, but she nodded softly. Sasuke walked over as she stood up, and took the brush from her hands. Turning her around to face away from him, he began to brush out the tangles and leaves, amazed at how soft her hair was, even in knots.

"Geez Aori, what do you use on your hair?" He couldn't see it, but Aori smiled softly at his question.

"Egg, milk and a bit of cow's blood" Sasuke's hand froze mid-stroke.

"Cow's blood…!"

"Yes. The proteins in the blood work wonders…" Sasuke just shook his head and began to brush her hair out again. Once he was done and Aori had moved to put the brush on her dresser, Sasuke decided to mention the festival.

"Aori…When I went to talk with the Hokage yesterday, she requested that both you and I appear at the Summer Festival, for a formal introduction…" Aori froze, and Sasuke didn't need to see her face to know that it had gone white. He went on, speaking quietly.

"She also hinted that if you did not show up, it would give her reason not to trust you…" Aori stood at her dresser, her back to Sasuke. There was no sound, and no movement, the room quiet enough that dust could be heard hitting the ground. Aori finally broke the stillness, nodding very slowly. Sasuke let out a little sigh. He had feared that she would refuse to go. Going to stand at the dresser with her, he tried to explain what they had to do next.

"Since this is a festival, we have to go in formal yukatas… Unfortunately, this house is pretty much devoid of any clothing like that. We have to go out into the town." He saw Aori shiver a little.

"Aori?"

"Alright. If we must we must…" Her voice was shaky, but strong.

"Now, if you will excuse me, I need to bathe." Sasuke watched Aori recede down the stairs, heading for the first floor bathroom.

As he stepped into the second floor bathroom, Sasuke paused, a slight frown on his face. He had never shown Aori the bathroom on the first floor. The timber of the house let out a slight creak. Sasuke looked at it, then shook his head, speaking quietly to himself.

"It couldn't be…"

When Sasuke finally made his way downstairs, Aori was standing quietly near the front entrance, her normal clothes in her place and her black shoes on her feet. She looked up and gave a small smile as he came closer.

"You take a very long time to bathe…" Sasuke glowered at her, making her laugh a little. When he opened the front entrance, she sobered up quickly. Sasuke looked at her, knowing that she was scared behind her emotionless mask of a face.

"Come on." He stepped outside, Aori following him like a shadow. He slid the door closed, and they headed towards the market district of Konoha.

They had not been walking for more than ten minutes when a loud squeal echoed off from their left.

"SASUKE!" Sasuke and Aori froze immediately, Sasuke's teeth gritting. He had just enough time to look over at Aori.

"Don't attack he-

He was cut off as Sakura collided with his midriff, pushing the air from his lungs with her frantic hug. Sasuke flicked his eyes to Aori, her eyes intense, a hand hovering over one of the concealed weapons on her person. He shook his head, and she balled her hand into a fist, letting the arm hang at her side.

Assured that Aori would not do anything rash, Sasuke turned his attention to the still-squealing kunoichi that was crushing his ribs with her enthusiasm.

"Goddamit Sakura! Get OFF of me!" He peeled the pink-haired woman from his body, and relaxed when she didn't charge him again. She just stood looking at him, her eyes shining, her mouth gushing endless words.

"OHSASUKE!It'ssoooooooooogoodtoseeyou. Whenyoudidn'tshowupagainafterthefightwiththatgirlIwasworriedthatyouhadbeenhurt!Youweren'thurtwereyou?Whydidyoutrytohelpthatcrazygirlanyways?FromwhatIcouldseeshewasreallycraz-

Sasuke cut of the waterfall of text by slamming his hand over Sakura's mouth. When he was sure that Sakura would not bust out talking again, he took his hand from her mouth, backing up to stand next to Aori, making Sakura finally notice her. She shrieked and backed up quickly, pointing at Aori in a horrified manner.

"OH MY GOD! LOOK OUT SASUKE! IT'S THAT GIRL! SHE'S RIGHT BEHIND YOU!" Sasuke grimaced, and snapped at her when she finally stopped screeching.

"Shut-up Sakura, and use your head for once. Does it seriously look like Aori is attacking me?" Sakura blinked, slightly dazed.

"Aori?"

"Yes, that would be her name."

"Her name…" Sasuke rolled his eyes. Sakura wasn't following this at all.

"Yes. She also is staying at my house, and we have hot and heavy sex every night." That got a reaction.

"…WHAT!" Sasuke snorted disdainfully at her reaction.

"It's about time…" He turned to face Aori, and saw that her mouth was quivering. He frowned.

"What's wrong?" Aori choked out an answer in a thick voice.

"Her…face…" Sasuke blinked, not quite comprehending until he turned to look at Sakura. Her face was a dark, blotchy red, with smaller pink bits all over. Sasuke snorted again, this time from amusement, not disdain. Sakura's face got darker as Sasuke turned to Aori.

"C'mon Aori, we still have to get some dre-

Sasuke froze as a hand landed heavily on his shoulder. He turned to see a very angry Sakura holding him back.

"Sasuke, is what you just said…true?" The tone of voice she used caused even Sasuke to shudder a little.

"No, it isn't. I just said that to get your attention."

"So…She ISN'T living in the same house as you, and you AREN'T having hot sex?" Sasuke rolled his eyes as he pulled Sakura's hand from his shoulder.

"No, we aren't having any sort of sexual interaction at all. But her living with me is true." He winced as her hand slammed back onto his shoulder, her nails digging into his skin a little.

"She IS living with you?" Sasuke growled, beginning to get annoyed.

"YES Sakura. Aori is living wit-

Her fist slammed against his face and Sasuke went flying into the air, landing painfully on his back. He could hear what sounded like struggling, and screeching, but the little brightly colored dots hadn't quite left his eyes yet. When they had, he looked around him and found Sakura on the ground, Aori kneeling on her midriff with a kunai to the pink-haired kunoichi's throat. He scrambled up, cursing under his breath, and pulled Aori off Sakura, turning her to face him.

"Aori, you can't do that!" Aori blinked, Sakura finally beginning to pull herself up behind them.

"But she hit you…" Sasuke sighed, letting Aori's shoulders go.

"That's what Sakura does when she's angry." Aori gave a mistrustful glance to Sakura.

"Just don't pay attention to it. She never hurts me that badly." Sasuke saw Aori clench her jaw, and nod slowly. He let out a small sigh of relief. He grabbed her forearm and began to pull her towards the square again, turning over his shoulder to look at Sakura as they walked away.

"Sakura. When you can talk to Aori and I like a civil person, then you may feel free to get within 5 feet of me. Until that time, don't." With that, he and Aori disappeared down a side street, leaving Sakura staring shocked at the point where they had turned.

Once Sasuke was sure that Sakura wasn't following them, he let go of Aori's arm, leaning up against the building they were next to and massaging his face were Sakura had hit him.

"Damn…Her punches have gotten better." He pulled his hand away and blood came off on his fingers. He had cut his cheek on a rock. Aori's eyes flicked over to him as they caught the red.

"You're bleeding." It wasn't a question. Sasuke let out a little huff.

"It's all right. It's nothing serious. See, the blood is already clotting. Come on, let's go." He started down the street, eventually hearing the soft hiss of cloth that signified Aori's following.

Within a few minutes, Sasuke stopped, standing at the door of an unremarkable looking building. He turned to Aori, a small smile on his face.

"This is it… Tanchou Yukatas. This is the best yukata/ kimono shop in Konoha. Come, let's go in." So saying, Sasuke pulled open the door, and disappeared into the semi-darkness. Aori hesitated, and then slowly walked into the building, the shining knife on the end of her braid being the last thing to disappear into the gloom.

All right! I can't wait for your reviews>.