Chapter Five:

The Barmaid

(The theme song for this chapter is "I Own You" by Shinedown)


It was only a short while later that Sasuke was making his way to the bar.

Kakashi and Naruto had stayed behind at the motel room; both of them had insisted that he had this covered. It was a poor excuse; Sasuke knew they just wanted to enjoy the comfort of the motel room longer. Naruto gave Sasuke a thumb's up as Sasuke slammed the motel room door on them.

The motel and bar were directly next to each other; Sasuke guessed it was because the bar kind of looked like an attachment to the motel, which prevented mortals from asking questions. Once they got curious, they were hard to silence. It was best to prevent them from questioning things in the first place.

It was a quiet evening early in the week. Sasuke was pleased to find the bar nearly empty, save for a few sketchy-looking creatures in the back corner. He was careful to avoid their peering eyes. Although he was unsure of their origins, he smelled a human. A mortal had been here recently, if they weren't still here, possibly hiding. While it piqued his curiosity, he was quick to remind himself that he had business here tonight, and it most certainly didn't involve a mortal.

He approached the bar, though he noticed Steve was missing. Sasuke guessed that the tavern owner must have been in the back somewhere, and that it would be best to wait for his return.

As he reached for a bar stool, it resisted his pull. The chair squeaked loudly as Sasuke dragged it away from its spot against the counter.

It was then that a pretty little brunette popped her head up from behind the bar, startling even Sasuke.

"Ah! You scared me!" She stood and put her hand on her chest, attempting to calm herself. "I thought we were under attack or something! I was just down here, you know, grabbing some stuff to clean, waiting for any customers... I didn't hear you come in. Sorry about that!"

She had doe brown eyes that matched her hair, which fell just past her chin. She wore a simple black top, a skirt that was a pale plum color, and she had a string of seashells resting on her neck. However, Sasuke hardly noticed this, as he was concerned with a much more jarring detail.

His eyes went wide, and he couldn't resist saying the first thing that came to his mind. "You're human."

"Ha ha, yeah." The woman scratched the back of her head. "Crazy, right? Steve has taken me under his... um, tutelage." She smiled sheepishly. "Anyways, what can I get you?"

"Aha. Actually, I'm here to speak to Steve."

The woman grabbed a nearby glass and began to scrub it with a wet rag. "Unfortunately, he won't be here for the rest of the night."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "That is kind of a bold move... Leaving a human girl here alone with no one to defend her. Something could happen."

The brunette set down the glass harshly; her lips formed a thin line. "Don't even try to fuck with me. I am a grown woman who is more than capable of handling herself."

Sasuke put his hands up defensively, a move that was very uncharacteristic for him; but he hadn't held a regular conversation with a human female in a long time, so he was rusty. He had obviously forgotten that he needed to tread lightly. If she really was under the care of Steve, he needed this girl on his side if he wanted a job. Realizing his mistake, he apologized.

"I'm not threatening! I was... actually concerned. Do you want me to stay here with you until you close up shop?"

Her features softened as he said this, and she returned to cleaning another glass. "I don't know why, but I believe you. And that is kind of you, but I can defend myself if needed."

"Hm. Well, I'd like a glass of blood, at least."

Now it was her turn to have wide eyes. They brightened with fear. She seemed like she was curious about his choice of drink, but she didn't ask him to extrapolate. "Would you like me to warm it up for you?"

"Yes, please." He was so tempted to flash his fangs at her, just to tease her a bit; but if she really did have an arsenal of weapons hidden behind the bar, he didn't want to find out.

Sasuke watched her walk to a nearby fridge and remove a bag of blood. They were both quiet as she warmed his drink for him. He smirked to himself - it was nearly comical that any fire the woman had was snuffed out when she realized what he was.

Soon after, she placed a warmed glass of blood in front of Sasuke. She turned away quickly in an attempt to get away from him, but he called to her. "Hey, miss!" Sasuke reached into his pocket.

She nearly jumped when he called for her, though she managed to turn back around. "Yeh...yes?"

"Don't you want this?" Sasuke set his money on the counter. "Keep the change as a tip."

She nodded and bowed her head slightly. "Thank you."

As she walked towards the cash register and she began to put the money away, Sasuke became thoughtful. What would a demon want with a cute, unassuming young woman, aside from the disturbing obvious reasons?

It was clear this girl wanted nothing to do with Sasuke. He sipped his drink as he watched her quickly walk away so she could sit as far from him as possible at the other end of the bar. She began to munch on strawberries that were hidden underneath the counter.

This irritated him. He didn't understand why she was so weary of him. She kept company with a demon and interacted with others of the night on a regular basis. Why would she have something against his kind?

She was still nibbling on her snack by the time he was finished.

He decided he needed to show kindness to her. If he left a good impression, she could put in a good word for him to her demon boss. It was going to be nearly painful for him to go out of his way to be nice, but he could do it if it meant he got something in return.

He stared at her as he slid from his stool. She stole a quick glance at him before becoming very focused on what she was putting in her mouth; she chewed furiously, as if she were trying to keep her mouth busy.

Sasuke sighed. This was going to be difficult.

Hoping she wouldn't have time to react, he walked towards her quickly and sat down again, this time directly in front of her. He was close enough to hear her heart racing. She was truly terrified.

"I won't hurt you," he said as he set his empty glass down. "I just want to talk."

She swallowed her food before she looked up at him, though she still avoided his eyes. "How I can I help you?" Her response was forced and nearly robotic.

Sasuke avoided making a face of distaste. "I take it you dislike my kind."

She quickly shook her head back and forth. "No, not at all! I was just hungry, so I came over here to eat."

He didn't believe it for a minute.

He set his elbows on the counter and leaned his face against his hands. "I don't kill humans, so you shouldn't be afraid."

Her eyes focused on him now.

Sasuke was somewhat surprised when she smiled at him. "Hm. That's good to know. We always have plenty of blood here, so you can always come to us when you are hungry."

He smiled back. "Thank you...? What is your name?"

She absentmindedly reached for the seashell necklace around her neck. "Hm. My name is Rin."

He held out a hand. "Sasuke Uchiha."

She hesitantly took his hand in hers. She shook it quickly before returning her hands in her lap to fiddle with her skirt.

A slight glisten of realization crossed over her eyes. "You don't mean... You are from the Uchiha family?"

Sasuke crossed his arms. "I am. I am all that remains." At least, as far as anyone outside of his comrades knew.

Rin pursed her lips in a frown of pity. "I... didn't realize that... you're him. I mean, the man Steve told me about. He told me you've moved back to the... place."

Sasuke nodded. "I'm tearing down the old village in order to rebuild it."

"That is a daunting task. How are things going?"

Sasuke shrugged. "I've known I would have to do it for most of my life. It is going well." He neglected to mention that it was taking much longer than he expected it would, and that he was getting very frustrated with the entire situation. He half wanted to just bomb the place to smithereens and begin anew. It would be easier and less time consuming than tearing it down bit by bit.

"That's good to hear." She rested a cheek against her fist. "What are you going to do when that's done?"

"Rebuild my village and my clan."

She scoffed. "Well, yeah. But the in between parts. How do you figure that in?"

He did his best to mask his annoyance. What was this? Twenty Questions? "It is going to take a long time to bring everything down. I imagine we will rebuild it all, one by one."

"Ah." She picked up another strawberry. "So, you have a bunch of people helping you?"

His annoyance was seeping into his words, knocking down any barrier he put up. "No. I don't. It's just me and two other people I consider family."

She blinked, the strawberry not yet to her lips. "Just three of you to take down all of that?"

He nearly bared his fangs. She had turned from a meek woman to an undesirable chit in mere minutes. "I am not exactly in a position to pay others to help me; and in case you didn't notice, my kind is not exactly popular in the underworld or your world, for that matter. I hardly have droves of beings rushing to aid me in my time of need, even though my clan was one of the most revered vampire clans that has ever existed. Our allies have long abandoned me and my kin. I was out of sight, out of mind, and soon forgotten. Now, I have to fix it myself." He narrowed his eyes at her, daring her to challenge him again.

"What can I do to help?"

Sasuke was nearly floored. "Excuse me?"

Rin set a stray hair behind her ear. "I... heard your story - you know, before you came back. Local gossip. So, I know what happened. It's terrible. It happened a long time ago, and most people would just give up. But you're trying to change things. You're strong. And it sounds like you have a worthy cause. I always try to support worthy causes." She let her lips form another small smile. "I work here a lot, but I would really like to help if I can."

This was what Sasuke wanted. He needed more allies. And though she was annoying, she could prove useful; maybe even entertaining. "You really want to help me?"

"Yes, yes I do."

He forced himself to make a face of desperation. "I really need a job. That is the real reason I came here tonight. I need employment, and I was going to ask Steve if he could help me at all. We are going to run out of money for food and necessities very soon. All of our measly savings have gone to repairing the village..."

She threw a hand up to stop him. "Say no more." She quickly grabbed one of his own hands in hers. Although she visibly shuddered, she had expected it to be very cold, and she recovered quickly. Her eyes were bright when they met his. "I will ask him... No, I won't just ask him. I will make him see things my way! I will do my best, Sasuke."

His knee-jerk reaction was to pull away, but he lingered, and her warmth comforted him in a strange way. He couldn't remember the last time someone he hardly knew was this kind to him. She was a little annoying, but he admired her spirit.

"Thank you, Rin."

"TEME!"

Sasuke had been so absorbed in his conversation with Rin, he hadn't heard the bell above the tavern doors chime. Or the sound of Naruto running towards him, preparing to tackle him.

However, Naruto was thwarted by Kakashi, who grabbed him by his collar. He was barely audible when he whispered in Naruto's ear, "Don't cause a scene!"

"But!"

Kakashi dropped Naruto abruptly after looking past Sasuke.

He was holding hands with a hot babe.

"Well, this is awkward." Kakashi smoothed back his hair with a flirty air. "I see you've been busy, Sasuke."

Sasuke quickly pulled his hand from Rin's grasp. "Don't be a dumbass. We were just talking."

Naruto stood and brushed off the front and back of his pants. "You look awfully suspicious, teme!"

Sasuke shot Naruto a murderous glance as Kakashi nearly glided along the floor towards the woman behind the bar. "And who is this? Show some manners, Sasuke, and introduce us to your beautiful new friend."

Rin visibly blushed as Sasuke held a hand towards her. "This is Rin. She works here." His hand turned towards his comrades. "Rin, this is Kakashi. And the idiot is Naruto."

Kakashi smoothly reached for her hand and kissed the back of it. Sasuke had never seen a woman blush so furiously before. "What a pleasure it is to meet you, Miss Rin."

"Um... um, ah. Um..."

Naruto cut Rin off before she could even form words. "We want a chocolate milkshake and a medium drink-thing of blood. To go. Now... Please."

Rin cautiously removed her hand from Kakashi's grip and reached for her necklace again. "Um..." She looked around at the three men, unsure of who to ask. She settled on Sasuke. "Do you want it warmed?"

"That would be great," Kakashi answered, his eyes crinkling. "Thank you for offering."

Rin looked cautiously at him before she turned to grab their order. Sasuke shot Kakashi a look, and Kakashi, knowing what Sasuke was thinking, shrugged in response. He shouldn't sit around holding hands with hot girls if he didn't want to get caught.

Sasuke took the drinks from her while Kakashi put the money in her palm, letting his fingers linger a little too long for Rin's comfort. "Ah... have a good rest of the night. See you soon, Sasuke?"

"Yes, I'll stop by tomorrow."

She waved as they walked out. Kakashi held the door for Sasuke and then walked on without them, knowing they would follow. Sasuke allowed the door to hit Naruto, who wasn't paying attention. Rin could hear their fighting words for some time after that as they traveled home.

Knowing they would bicker for a while, Kakashi surreptitiously removed his mask and drank his fill before his boys could even realize what had happened.

"Foiled again!" Naruto screamed.


A/N:
Ahhh!

You know I love you all, but I am an adult with adult responsibilities. I am updating as fast as I can. D:

Please bare with me. Unless I say in a chapter update I'm stopping this story, it will continue on.

I really, REALLY appreciate reviews. I love it when you guys throw out ideas. Seriously: give me some ideas, your thoughts, guess what is going to happen next, whatever... And I just may put it in the story!

Cheers!