So, here it is, 3 mo.s later...Chapter 11! Cringes Don't hurt me TT. I'd like to thank all of my reviewers! Oh, and I would especially like to thank the one person who criticized the story It helped remind me that there IS room for improvement. Oh, yeah, also on that note.

FLAMERS: Don't even bother. Your reviews will be given less-than-zero of my attention.

CRITICIZE: As long as it is constructive, I welcome criticize. If you read something you don't like, tell me what, and if there's anything I can do to fix it, tell me that too! Just take heed of what I have written about flames. If you leave something like "This story sucks!" or something that I'm sure would be much more inventive, it will be IGNORED.

...Anywho, here's chapter 11! Enjoy

Ch. 11

When Aori's eyes had finally adjusted to the lower light, they widened. Lying out in front of her were yukatas of every size, color and make. Formal ones, casual ones, spring and winter ones. It was the largest amount of yukatas she had ever seen in her life.

Sasuke was waiting for her in the middle of this room, a small smile quirked his mouth at the expression on her face. He opened his mouth to say something, but stopped as a man walked in.

"Hey! What are you doing here! Customers aren't allowed back here. So come on, get out!" Sasuke look at Aori, raising his eyebrows, and she relaxed, though her hand still hovered over her pants, ready to grab a kunai. Sasuke turned to the man.

"Surely now you haven't forgotten me, Yukio-san?" Aori saw the man's eyes widen, and then he broke into a smile and a bow.

"Sasuke-san! Yours is a face that has not been seen around here for many years." Yukio let out a joyous laugh. "It is good to see you again." Aori blinked as she saw Sasuke's mouth break into a genuine smile, one that lit up his normally moody face.

"As it is you, Yukio-san. Oh, I should introduce you to my guest." Sasuke turned and beckoned Aori forward. She moved stiffly, tense and nervous. She reached Sasuke's side and halted, eyeing the man in front of her. He was slightly taller than her, balding, and a little flabby. A quick look at Sasuke told her that she was safe. She bowed quickly, and then moved back a few feet again. Yukio frowned, confused.

"What's up with her? And who is she?" Sasuke sighed.

"Her name is Aori. She is my guest at the Uchiha house. She doesn't like strangers too much, so just let her be." Yukio just shrugged, focusing on Sasuke again.

"So Sasuke-san…What brings you to this fine store today?"

"Aori and I need formal yukatas for the Summer festival tonight. We were alerted that we would be guests of honor on…" Sasuke made a face "…short notice." Yukio nodded in understanding, and then headed over to a full rack of yukatas.

"Well Sasuke-san, I do believe I have just the yukata for you." He rummaged through the hanging yukatas, and eventually pulled one off the rack. It was black, with golden koi swimming up and down its length. Sasuke stepped forward, taking the yukata from Yukio and looking at it closely. After a precise inspection, Sasuke handed the yukata back to Yukio, nodding.

"I'll take it."

"Very good! Let me just go and ring up the-

"No." Both men turned to look at Aori, puzzled. She was standing next to a haphazard pile of old, worn yukatas.

"No what Aori?" She shrugged softly.

"No, not that yukata. Not for you." At her words, Yukio's eyebrows rose, and he stepped forward, slightly insulted.

"And why not this yukata miss? It is one of the best ones we own, and I have been in this business much longer than you have, I'm sure." She shook her head again.

"Not that one. This one is much better." She turned rummaging through the pile of old yukatas. Sasuke sighed, and Yukio frowned.

"Have you gone mad miss? There is nothing of value in that pile. Those are all rags." Aori shook her head, her red locks flying as she dug through the pile.

"No, these two are different." Sasuke was frowning now as well, and both he and Yukio moved forward when Aori finally straightened.

"Aori, did you just say two?" Her only response was to turn, revealing fabric overflowing from her arms. She carefully placed her precious bundle on the floor, and then held up one of the yukatas she had dug out. Yukio's eyes widened, and he dropped the yukata he held. Sasuke looked at him.

"Yukio-san?" He just moved forward, to look closer at the yukata. It was a yukata of deep blue silk, with silvery-red dragons flowing over the surface. Their embroidery was so delicate it seemed almost as if their scaled bodies undulated over the cloth, their eyes glowing.

"This…this is a Mythical yukata…" Sasuke frowned, confused.

"A mythical yukata?"

"Yes. It is one of a set. This one has dragons, the other phoenixes. They are one of a kind, the rarest and most expensive yukatas in the world. They are said to have been made by gods… But they were supposed to have perished long ago. That they have been here, all this time…Is amazing…" Yukio moved to hold up the other yukata, treating it as a gossamer spider's web that might break at the slightest touch. This yukata was a pale green, and had three large, graceful phoenixes embroidered around its length. They glimmered a fiery red and orange, again their embroidery seeming to make them move, flap their wings, and look about gracefully. Sasuke blinked.

"And you're saying that Aori just found these…In a pile of old yukatas."

"Yes. You two must be destined to wear them. Speaking of which…try them on!" Sasuke looked at Yukio, extreme shock on his face.

"Try them on?" Yukio looked at Sasuke like a teacher at a five-year old.

"Yes, try them on. Your friend here found them, so you two are obviously meant to wear them, but you should still try them on to make sure they fit." Sasuke looked at Yukio like he was mad, but decided to play along.

"Ok…" He stepped forward, reaching for the one Yukio held, only to have him pull it away.

"Yukio-san! What-

"Not this one! This is a women's yukata. Yours is the one the miss holds." Sasuke sighed.

"Fine, whatever." He grabbed the deep blue yukata from Aori and slipped into a dressing room to pull it on. Out in the room, Aori cautiously accepted the phoenix yukata from Yukio.

"There is a dressing room for you to try this on in right next to his miss." She nodded her thanks and then slipped inside to try on the brilliant yukata.

A few minutes, Sasuke stepped from his dressing room, looking impressed despite himself. The blue yukata fit him well, and the color made his skin and hair extremer than usual, his skin looking pure and delicate as snow, his hair fierce and dark, like the eye of a hurricane.

"Impressive. Aori did good when she found these…" He looked at himself carefully in a mirror, and then turned to Yukio.

"How much would you like for this yukata, Yukio-san?" Yukio shook his head, staring at Sasuke awe struck.

"I cannot ask for payment. This yukata found you. I did not find it for you." Sasuke let out a small, irritated growl.

"I refuse to take the yukata without paying Yukio. Tell me how much you want for it."

"No! Take it for free! I cannot ask for payment!"

"I'm paying you whether you want it or not!"

"No!" Sasuke opened his mouth to retort, but stopped at the sound of a door creaking. He and Yukio both turned to look at the door to Aori's changing room. She had opened it enough that she could stick her head out.

"…I've changed…" Sasuke raised his eyebrows.

"Well, why don't you come out then, so that we can see how it looks?" Aori stood there, hesitating, and Sasuke had to fight to keep a smile from his face. Although she showed no more emotion that usual, Sasuke had a feeling that Aori was a little embarrassed.

"Well? Come on out." With a reluctant push, Aori opened the door the rest of the way and stepped out softly. Sasuke's eyes widened and a gasp escaped from Yukio's mouth.

The pale green of the yukata accented Aori's skin, making it tanner, and adding rose to her cheeks. The phoenixes seemed almost content now, their embroidery now just shimmering softly. Their red-orange hues also added to Aori's color, making her deep red hair seem even redder, and rich. Aori fidgeted, uncomfortable under the stares of the two in front of her.

"Sasuke?" Sasuke blinked, and looked at her.

"Huh? Oh… Aori, do you like the yukata?" Aori nodded softly.

"Alright then." Sasuke turned back to Yukio.

"I will take both of them. How much do you want for them?"

"I've already told you Sasuke-san, I cannot accept payment for them! They aren't mine to ask money for!" Sasuke sighed, and pulled a small purse from his pocket, opening it and pulling out 400,000 yen. He took the money and placed it into Yukio's hands.

"Accept it from me as a friend then, Yukio-san, for I will pay you no matter what." Yukio seemed to deflate as his hands closed around the money.

"Alright…Well, change out of the yukatas and I can package them for you." Aori and Sasuke did as Yukio bid them and waited silently for a few minutes. Yukio returned from another room, handing Sasuke two carefully wrapped square packages.

"I would take them out of the wrapping as soon as you get home." Sasuke nodded his thanks and then he and Aori left through the back door again, blinking as they stepped into the light. Aori turned to Sasuke.

"Would you like me to carry one?"

"Yeah, thanks. Here." Sasuke handed one of the parcels over to Aori, moving his own under one arm as he began retracing their earlier steps along the street, Aori walking softly beside him.

Sasuke shut the door behind him with a small sigh. He and Aori had managed to make it home without meeting any of Sasuke's other year-mates, but that had not stopped him from tensing up outside. Aori just stood in the hallway in front of him silently, her eyebrows slightly raised.

"Did you not want to go out Sasuke? You seem happy to be back inside…" Sasuke shook his head.

"No, it's not that. It's just…I didn't want to have to face any of the kids I went to the academy with…" Aori tilted her head to the right.

"But aren't they your friends?" Sasuke shrugged.

"I don't know…I guess Naruto…But no one else really…"

"Naruto?" Sasuke's eyes flicked to look at Aori.

"The blond haired guy you attacked." Aori allowed herself to look a little ashamed.

"Oh." Sasuke looked at her, slightly amused.

"Don't be ashamed about attacking him." He snickered a little, making Aori look at him weirdly.

"I'm never going to let him forget it! You beat him without even laying a finger on him." Aori looked at him blankly for a moment.

"That is an exact reason why I should be ashamed…It was unsportsmanlike." Sasuke let out a very unSasuke-like snort.

"Trust me, he's done worse, and more likely than not, he'll have already forgiven you, as long as you promise to spar with him sometime. He can't STAND being beaten." Aori just blinked again. After an uncomfortable few quiet minutes, Sasuke cleared his throat softly.

"Well, I guess we need to start getting ready… The festival is in a few hours." Aori nodded, and turned to head upstairs before Sasuke stopped her with a touch on her arm.

"Do you know how to put on make-up, and make your hair in a special way? This is a very important festival and…" His voice faded at the gentle glare coming from Aori, and he stepped back.

"Alright! Sorry for worrying." Aori just shook her head softly and made her way up to her room, closing the door softly behind her. Sasuke caught himself sighing, something he had been doing a lot. He looked down at the parcel in his hands.

"I guess I should start getting ready too…"

Sasuke paced impatiently in the welcome-room of his house. Aori had gone up to get ready 3 hours ago, and it was nearing 7:30 and she hadn't come out of her room. He was struggling with whether to go knock on her door or whether to wait a little longer when he heard soft foot falls on the stairs. He stopped pacing to blink at the vision that assaulted his eyes.

Aori had taken a bath, and her hair and skin was radiant. Her hair was still in a long braid, but the braid was made of smaller sections of already braided hair, and that gave it a stunning effect. Sasuke could also see that she did indeed know how to use make-up. Her cheeks were faintly pink, and she had on a smoky red eyeshadow that matched her yukata perfectly. She had on a white shirt under the yukata that came up to the top of her neck again, but the yukata made up for that. The phoenixes appeared to like their hostess, for they glittered and shimmered brilliantly, the color reflecting off of Aori's face.

"Sasuke?" Sasuke blinked hard.

"Sorry. You look great." Aori gave him a small smile.

"You look good too." It was true. Sasuke had given his hair a thorough brushing, and it shined a brilliant black and the dragon yukata looked amazing, accenting his shoulders and arms in just the right way. Sasuke blinked.

"Uh. Thanks. Well, shall we get going?" Aori nodded and he turned, offering her his right hand and arm. Aori just stood there, staring at his arm slightly puzzled. Sasuke's eyebrows rose.

"You're supposed to take my hand, Aori." Her eyes flicked up to him, slightly nervous.

"If we enter holding hands, it signifies that you have come to the festival with me. It should make sure that you don't get any…unwanted attention…" Aori blinked, comprehension dawning in her eyes.

"Oh." With that, she slowly reached out her gloved hand and slipped it into Sasuke's hand. Sasuke felt his face heat up a little, and he frowned. Why was he blushing? It was just holding her hand.

"Are we going now Sasuke?" Sasuke looked at her, and then gritted his teeth.

"Yeah…The sooner we go, the sooner we can leave." He stepped out into the empty night-darkened street with Aori, and they headed toward the central square, where they could see lights and masses of people awaiting them. Sasuke felt Aori's hand tighten on his a fraction of an inch, and he looked over at her.

"You won't do anything…rash…tonight, right?" Aori looked at him solemnly.

"I will not attack someone unprovoked." Sasuke sighed, knowing that was the best he would get.

"Come on… Let's head over before we're late." They took one step, then another, and a third, heading towards the brightly twinkling lights amidst the blackness.

Well, tell me what you thought. Oh, one little question for all of my readers. I'm trying to decide if Aori should fall for just Sasuke, or Sasuke and Naruto. Now, I know that seems a little-er-slutty, but Naruto ends up being a big part of the story line, so yeah. Lemme know in your review