Wow. I got back from Otakon and now that I'm not massively busy with costumes, I've got time to type! I was able to capture my muse for long enough to crank this chapter out; I hope you enjoy!
"Daughter, what is this?" Sakura's father hissed as the small party of four made its way into a sitting room. "You invited this man inside?"
Sakura smiled demurely up at him. "But of course, father," she beamed. "He is my guest, after all."
As her father sputtered incoherently, her mother placed an anxious hand on Sakura's shoulder. "Are you quite sure about this, love?"
Sakura glanced over her shoulder to where Itachi was politely feigning deafness. Their eyes met briefly, and her smile widened in response to the way the corners of his lips twitched upward. "Yes," she agreed amiably. "Yes, I'm certain."
She and her mother sat down on a velvet-covered couch, and her father hovered threateningly over her from a nearby chair.
"Please, have a seat," Sakura urged Itachi. He chose an ornately carved wooden chair and accepted the wine Lord Haruno reluctantly offered him.
"Thank you," he murmured quietly; Sakura's father only growled at him.
"Why have you come here? What business do you have with my daughter?"
Sakura half-rose and tugged her father back into his chair. "Calm down, father, and give our guest time to speak," she chided, peering concernedly into his apoplectic face.
Itachi took a deliberate sip of his wine before replying. "My apologies for dropping in unannounced," he began calmly. "I met Lady Sakura at one of the dances—the one held by the Viscountess of Hawkford, I believe…"
"It was," Sakura confirmed from the side. He sent her a small smile, not really more than a quirk of his lips, which did not go unnoticed by either of her parents.
"Lord Neji of Spindale and his fiancée were kind enough to introduce us," he continued, seemingly oblivious to the death glares thrown his way by a red-faced Lord Haruno. "As to why I am here now…" He fixed his eyes on Sakura, who blushed.
"Yes?" her father prompted, impatient to be rid of the unwanted visitor.
Itachi's lips curved upward into a predatory smirk that was matched by Sakura behind her father's back. "I have come to request your permission to court your daughter."
Hell broke loose.
"My sincerest apologies," Sakura told her prospective suitor as she escorted him to the door. "My father will come around when he calms down."
Itachi smirked at her, placing a soft kiss on the back of her hand. "It is quite all right," he murmured, and his warm breath fanning over the delicate skin made her suppress a shiver. "Tonight has been quite… entertaining."
"You're entertaining yourself with my daughter?!" Lord Haruno roared from the room at the end of the hallway. "I knew you were up to no good, you bastard!"
He suddenly fell silent, and Sakura knew that her mother had grown tired of his rudeness at last. Lady Haruno came gliding out of the room, not followed meekly by her husband, and stopped before Itachi.
"My lord will recover from his temper tantrum soon enough," she said in an icy voice that left Itachi with no doubt whatsoever as to where Sakura had inherited her way of expressing anger. "If Sakura approves of your suit, you may call tomorrow, after supper."
Itachi bowed courteously and took his leave, his long hair tickling Sakura's face for a brief moment as it blew in the wind.
This instant the door closed, Lady Haruno's shoulders relaxed, and she looked at her daughter. "The Marquess of Mirrorwood?" She lifted an eyebrow.
Sakura smiled sweetly. "He is a fine catch, is he not, Mother?"
Lady Haruno's frown did not shift. "You nearly gave me a coronary when I saw him in the doorway," she rebuked the girl grimly.
Sakura's smile did not waver in the least at her mother's disapproving tone. "My apologies," she said serenely. "But Father would never have allowed it, and I think that the marquess deserves at least one chance. Is there a problem with my choice?"
The countess gave a short laugh and reflected wryly that this was indeed her daughter. "No, daughter. There is no problem. Are you certain you can keep him from straying? I heard that while he was courting that Ino girl, he was also playing with one of her married cousins. Poor girl, she's lucky that Lord Yamanaka stopped the foolishness and married her off to that Nara boy before any harm was done."
Sakura shrugged carelessly. "I do not think he will stray unless I give him a good reason to; at least, not for a while."
"Be careful," Lady Haruno warned. "He is not the type of man you are accustomed to seeing. He will be a match for your wits."
Her daughter's grin widened. "I would not have it any other way, Mother."
Satisfied that Sakura knew what she was getting into, Lady Haruno gave a short nod and embraced her offspring gently before withdrawing to check on her sulking husband.
Sakura chuckled at her parents' antics and returned to her room, where she carefully folded the finished sleeve, placed it on her night table so she would remember to give it to her mother in the morning, and unbound her hair, letting it fall down just past her shoulders.
With the slight pressure on her scalp relieved, she sighed happily and found refuge in the study, where she curled up in a chair by the fire and opened a large book on human anatomy—not quite respectable reading for a young lady, not by a long stretch of the imagination, by she only read it in private anyway.
As the heat of the fire gently warmed her skin, she closed her eyes in content and reflected silently on a job well done.
"You really want this, then?" Lord Haruno growled, glaring across the table at his daughter and wife as he stabbed his breakfast.
Sakura took a calm sip of tea before setting her cup down carefully and lacing her fingers together. "Yes, father. He is… a good man at heart." She raised an eyebrow and added, "And rich besides."
Her father's fist became acquainted with the tabletop for the fourth time that morning.
"Goddamnit, Sakura!" he roared, knocking his food and newspaper out of the way. "I don't just care if he's rich; I also want what's best for you!"
"I know that," Sakura said sharply. "And my lord of Mirrorwood happens to be what will make me happy."
"We have already been through this," her mother agreed, glancing warningly at her enraged husband. "Three times. Your temper will not ruin my breakfast."
Faced with the wrath of his two most beloved—and feared—females, the earl sat down and sullenly picked up his newspaper.
"I still don't like him," he muttered quietly.
The muted hiss that escaped his wife raised the hairs on the back of his neck, but his daughter only smiled—and somehow that scared him even more.
Sakura tilted her head, that same soft, dangerous smile still playing on her lips. "But I do, Father. At the moment, that's all that matters." Her mood abruptly shifted. "My lord will visit again tonight. I do believe he plans to ask about the Viscount of Hawkford's ball tomorrow night." She glanced at her mother, lips curling up into a sly smile. "Mother, will you accompany us as we shock the rest of the world?"
Lady Haruno laughed in a way that frightened her husband—eerily similar to Sakura's expression, it was—but her daughter seemed unperturbed, waiting patiently for an answer.
"Of course, dear," she chuckled. "If you and your young man think similarly, I expect to enjoy myself very much."
Sakura's smile widened, settling into a satisfied expression. "How can we disappoint you?"
"I know you won't," Lady Haruno sighed. "I do hope this is not a plan for revenge on Hawkford's wife; she is the one throwing the ball, you know, since the last one was such a success."
"Oh, is she?" Sakura tilted her head and blinked innocently. "Why, the thought hadn't crossed my mind…"
Her mother knew better and only laughed softly. "Be careful, Sakura," she warned, sobering. "That woman is a scheming—well, try to avoid drawing her attention."
"That may be difficult, seeing as we plan to have all eyes on us tomorrow night," Sakura mused.
Lord Haruno opened his mouth and then closed it, figuring that his opinion didn't matter much anyways.
Itachi bowed politely to Lord and Lady Haruno before situating himself in the proffered chair and lacing his fingers together. He surveyed Sakura over his fingertips without a word.
She smiled placidly back at him. "You are taking me to the ball at Hawkford tomorrow? My mother has agreed to chaperone us."
Lord Haruno looked mortified by his daughter's gall, but Itachi merely nodded. "I will arrive on your doorstep at seven. The viscountess has requested that everyone wear light colours to match the weather recently. Would you wear dark blue with me?"
As Lord Haruno gaped, Sakura placed a hand shyly to her cheek. "Blue? On our first public outing together?" she murmured. "I couldn't, my lord. Perhaps black would be more appropriate." She glanced up at him through her lashes.
Itachi chuckled, leaning forward to take her hands. "Very well, then. What fun we shall have! I shall see you tomorrow night." His expression sobered. "On a different note… I wanted to warn you to stay away from Kabuto of Shieldwood. Rumour has it he worked with Orochimaru, that madman who was part of the infamous ring called Akatsuki. Do not trust him."
Sakura gave him a skeptical look. "Rumour also has it that the Duke and Duchess of Sixwood are the leaders of Akatsuki and that you—" she began dryly, only to be cut off quickly.
"Confidential, I'm afraid," he told her quietly, confirming her doubts. "Though I would like very much to know from whom your information came." He raised an expectant eyebrow.
Her eyes laughed at him. "You didn't really think Lady Sixwood and I were just standing there looking pretty, did you?"
He shrugged. "Of course you were pretty…" His eyes narrowed slightly, noticeable only to Sakura. "She told you that, did she? It would seem that she sees something in you, then." His tone was thoughtful.
"She saw your future wife in me, I would hope," Sakura replied lightly. "And you have my word; I will avoid Kabuto to the best of my ability. If I find myself kidnapped, you have my permission to do as you wish."
"Now wait a minute!" Lord Haruno sat upright. "The marquess is a friend of ours! He has been nothing but a kind, polite young man, and I will not have you insulting him by avoiding him or making up ridiculous stories about him."
"Is that so…?" Itachi hummed pensively but said nothing more on the subject. "Ah; I had forgotten. A gift for you, lady." He drew a skein of shimmering silver floss from his pocket, placing it gently in Sakura's hands. "My mother had it brought from her country home specifically for you." His eyes glinted wryly. "It was part of her dowry; I suspect it is something of a peace offering."
"Her dowry?" Sakura stroked the floss reverently, relishing in the smooth texture of the silk. "Oh, tell her thank you for me! It is beautiful… Now I suppose I shall have to think of something to offer her in return." She looked to Itachi. "Ideas?"
He raised his hands helplessly. "I cannot help you, I am afraid," he told her. "God forbid I understand the workings of my mother's mind! Additionally, I assure you she expects nothing back, and you are not to return the gift under any circumstances." At Sakura's skeptical look, he clarified," She was very specific. And loud."
Sakura nodded. "Therefore, I shall send her something."
"Perhaps a piece of embroidery, then?" Lady Haruno suggested.
"I believe that would be suitable," Itachi agreed. "Mother will be pleased."
"What, by receiving a gift which she specifically asked not to be given?" Lord Haruno asked, bewildered.
Itachi nodded. "Yes. I confess I do not understand it myself, but if Sakura and Lady Haruno say she must give something back, then it must be so. Only a female would understand another female's mindset."
"Truer words have never been spoken," Lord Haruno muttered, carefully keeping a watchful eye on his wife to gauge her reaction to his words. She smiled pleasantly, but the subtle twitching of her eyebrows warned him from pursuing the matter further. He cleared his throat hastily. "Anyway! You'll be stopping in for supper at some point, I expect?"
"So I would hope," Itachi murmured, regarding the woman he was courting. "As a…" he smirked sardonically, sharing a private joke with Sakura, "man raised by my mother, I await an invitation from my lady."
"Very polite of you," Sakura told him, beaming. "Very proper. I think… you shall have to keep waiting. Let us see the extent of your patience." She poked her tongue out between her teeth saucily.
Itachi chuckled. "Very well, then. Let the game begin. I think you will find, Lady Sakura, that my patience exceeds yours."
"Oh? Are you so sure, then?"
"Yes." The intensity of his gaze trapped Sakura's, and she found that she could not avert her eyes. "I have all the patience I will need." She shivered silently, still caught up in the roiling emotion expressed only in his eyes.
A silent spectator to the exchange, Lord Haruno wondered at the calm, dignified manner with which the marquess took Sakura's cheek. The nerve of the girl! Lord Haruno might be submissive at times to his wife, but he knew men who were much freer with their blows and harsh words.
Lady Haruno had similar thoughts, but she wasn't worried about whether or not her daughter knew what kind of man she was courting (he might think he was the one doing all the wooing, but Sakura was courting him right back).
No, Sakura could take care of herself. She just wondered if Itachi of Mirrorwood knew exactly what he was getting himself into. If he so much as raised a finger toward Sakura in a manner she didn't like, he would find himself dancing on brimstone, courtesy of both ladies of the Haruno household.
But she didn't worry much, watching them interact in silence, almost as if telepathically.
It seemed they would be fine together.
Lady Haruno settled back, satisfied for the moment to watch the events unfold.
Poor Lord Haruno. He'll probably have a heart attack sometime soon from the shock of his daughter and Itachi's actions... So recently I've become obsessed with the TV show Doctor Who. I mean, c'mon, who doesn't like aliens? You can probably expect a few fanfics for that series, but since I'm American, the British-ness will probably suck. For cereal. On another note, I have a little black felt hat with decorations on it! I bought it at Otakon and I'm so happy…