Three days later, and Orochimaru still couldn't get enough of the lavender.

He was burning it every night, trying to get the scent soaked into his entire room. In his sheets, in the walls, in the floor, everywhere. He wanted to drive Itachi away as fast as he could, and in every way possible. Orochimaru had put off going to sleep for the longest time: he knew tonight was when Itachi was going to show. His entire body screamed at him to get out of the room, but he knew he couldn't-where would he go? And what would everyone else think of him? They didn't even know what was going on-except for Kabuto and Kenshin, that was. Orochimaru sighed and rose from his bed, lighting a match and igniting two more sticks of incense. These he set in a shallow, hanging dish across from several other sticks of incense, above his head and without any danger of being knocked over unless someone deliberately reached up and overturned the metal plate. Orochimaru folded his hands, whispering a last prayer to whatever God he thought was up there, and then turned to get back into bed.

Bloody Sharingan bled their fury straight into his eyes.

Orochimaru gasped with surprise and jumped back, clutching his thin kimono tighter around himself. It was hardly a deterrent, but it was worth a shot. Itachi's only response was a smirk, and he lifted his head nobly so the light hit his face from every angle. The candles cast frightening shadows across Itachi's face, features set in lust unimaginable. Orochimaru took a small step back, trying to put some distance between himself and Itachi. Itachi merely stepped forward, as if mocking Orochimaru by showing him how little control he had.

"Good to see you, my love."

Orochimaru swallowed hard against the Uchiha's treacherous words, trying to force himself to calm down. His breath came rapidly now, for fear of what was to come. "Itachi, listen to me," Orochimaru whispered, trying to talk his way out of the situation, "I know you claim you love me, but that can't possibly be true if this is your way of showing it." Orochimaru's heart was pounding in his ears, and he felt like his chest was going to explode. His entire body broke out in a cold sweat under Itachi's piercing gaze, and Orochimaru suddenly felt like melting into a puddle and oozing out under the door, never to be found again. "Stop this! You have to listen to me!" Orochimaru was growing desperate, but he could see no alternative than to keep going. Desperate times called for desperate measures. "Don't hurt me! Don't this! If you truly loved me, you would respect my decision not to have sex with you! I was a virgin when I met you, and wanted it to stay that way! You're the only person who's ever even touched me, and it was against my will! Don't do this, not if you love me like you say you do!"

For a moment, Itachi seemed to falter. His eyes seemed to soften, and Orochimaru's heart leaped with hope. Maybe…maybe he had gotten through to Itachi! Maybe the Uchiha was finally listening to him-

"I hate lavender. And you know it."

Orochimaru's heart plummeted. Too late, then. And, of course, Itachi was not taking no for an answer-again. But, it was worth a shot. Orochimaru took a step back again, heart pounding like a beating drum. He hadn't tried this before, but it might work…Orochimaru could feel adrenaline coursing through his veins, each and every nerve humming with the energy produced by his fearful brain. He had tried everything else-now, it was time to stop fooling around.

In a flash, Orochimaru had three sticks of incense between his fingers, and had thrown them like kunai.

The distraction was enough as Itachi swatted away the smoldering sticks, and Orochimaru bolted from the room. He slammed open the door and kept running, bare feet pounding the floor as heavily as his racing heart. Breath came in short, panicky gasps, and Orochimaru could feel cold sweat dripping down his every curve. Orochimaru had no idea where to run, but he knew that there was one place he could disappear to-

The roof.

Itachi was afraid of heights.

Orochimaru had discovered this the night when he ran from Akatsuki. He had fled from Itachi, and taken the roof out. Itachi had followed him the entire way, but the second he leapt onto the roof, he faltered and stopped. Orochimaru had gotten away cleanly, and Itachi, apparently, hadn't bothered to give chase again. Now, Orochimaru fought his way to the stairs, knowing that there were ninja along the way who could slow Itachi down. He went past every booby trap he had ever set in the place, doing everything he could to keep ahead of Itachi. He could hear Itachi behind him, heart he footsteps and the sharp draw of breath into strong lungs-Orochimaru bore down harder, whipping around a corner so fast he could feel his body form a parallel to the ground for a moment. He righted himself quickly, and bolted up the set of stars he had turned into two at a time. Itachi seemed to realize where Orochimaru was dragging him, and suddenly seemed twice as fast. Orochimaru reached the top of the stairs and hung a sharp right, using the railing on the stairs to swing himself around. He didn't even stop to attack Itachi-he just kept on, burying himself in the fear that propelled him faster and faster. Orochimaru's lungs were having trouble keeping pace with him at that point: his side ached. His legs were throbbing, and his nose and throat burned from breathing so rapidly. Orochimaru knew it was going to go down to the wire-Itachi wasn't giving up, not so close to the doorway! Orochimaru reached out, grabbed the handle, and bolted out the door-

Onto a narrow catwalk-like strip of flat roof.

The rest of the roof sloped away menacingly down two stories, but Orochimaru pressed on without fear. He knew his way around, and he also knew he had enough level-headedness to catch himself if he fell. He was a sannin, not an Academy student! Did Itachi think that he was as scared as he was? And what was with that, anyway? Why was Itachi so frightened of being exposed at such a height? He could hold himself down with chakra, and right himself if he fell. It wasn't as if he was a helpless child.

Itachi balked two steps out.

Orochimaru backed away a bit more, breathing hard. He bent over, bracing his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath. Itachi paced like a caged animal across the doorway, glaring at Orochimaru like the devil himself. "You can't stay there forever!" he called, stopping in front of the door. "And I'm losing patience with you, Orochimaru!"

"You can't stay there forever, either," Orochimaru panted, straightening somewhat. Was that-? Itachi's teeth ground together in frustration. The little shit was smirking at him! Orochimaru continued, apparently much more confident. "Ninja will be here any moment to deal with you," Orochimaru said softly. "And I can deal with you from a distance. Besides, don't you need to go home to Pein? What will he think if you don't make it back from your mysterious mission the night before? You can't afford the time, Itachi. I know the reason you leave right after you sleep with me is so you can make it back to Akatsuki in time to avoid suspicion from Pein. Also, so Kabuto doesn't catch you the next morning, but you would kill him if you had the time. Itachi, please, just this once-spare me the pain of being raped by someone I thought I loved."

Itachi's eyes narrowed menacingly. "You know you love me," he growled. "Don't try to deny it, Orochimaru. You love me, more than you love life itself. You wouldn't dare-"

Orochimaru sighed, letting his head hang in sadness. "Itachi, I always knew you had lost it, but this…is there a tumor in your brain, or something? Get a grip! I hate you!" All of a sudden, the fury of the past few encounters welled up in Orochimaru, and he felt himself boiling over. "And I refuse to be your stupid little toy anymore!"

At first, Itachi only looked stunned. Then, his look changed to that of someone who has just been slapped in the face and not taken it well. Orochimaru could see blue chakra now, tapering off Itachi in waves, and swallowed hard, taking a step back. Just because Itachi was afraid of heights didn't mean he wouldn't attack Orochimaru. When Itachi spoke, it was like he was speaking to a confused child.

"You don't know what you want. You're so confused right now…come here, I'll make it much clearer for you…"

Orochimaru took another step back, whimpering softly. It was safe to say he was genuinely scared now. Itachi might even risk his own fear to take Orochimaru's…Orochimaru took another step back-

His foot almost slid off the edge of the roof.

Orochimaru gasped and sprang forward, away from the edge of the roof. If worst came to worst, he could jump, but it was a calculated risk. He knew if he was prepared, he could land correctly, but what if it was a spur-of-the-moment thing? What if he didn't anticipate-? Orochimaru shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. Getting off the roof was a bad idea, since he needed to exploit Itachi's every weakness. But Itachi didn't seem to have a weakness anymore! As Orochimaru watched in terror, Itachi began taking long, slow strides out onto the sloped roof, right towards Orochimaru. Every step was another moment Orochimaru couldn't afford to waste. Do something! He screamed at himself. Don't give up now! He'll be worse than ever, now that you've succeeded in defying him-

As Orochimaru looked around, he could see people beginning to stream out of the complex, gathering around the roof and pointing up at the two on top of it. Orochimaru realized that the commotion in the halls must have awakened them. Orochimaru had set off countless booby traps, hoping to ensnare Itachi in one of them. Itachi had set off the rest, but had somehow kept right on Orochimaru's tail by speeding up once he freed himself. And that was what frightened Orochimaru more than anything-Itachi didn't even care about the prize, so much as he liked the chase. 

Orochimaru looked down amongst the people huddled there, gasps and whispers echoing among them. Orochimaru glanced back to Itachi, heart rate rising again. He needed to do something-Itachi's pace was increasing, and in another few moments, he would be close enough to grab Orochimaru. Orochimaru knew that Itachi's anger was allowing him to get over his apprehension long enough to walk out on the thin walkway on top of the roof, but what about jumping down from it?

Time to find out.

Orochimaru leaned back, allowing himself to fall from the roof. He closed his eyes, relying on his chakra to land gracefully on his feet. But instead, Orochimaru was caught halfway by a ninja scrambling up the wall to provide some assistance with Itachi. The man-Orochimaru knew it was a man by the iron grip, the rippling muscles, and the solid build-jumped back down the wall with his chakra, carrying Orochimaru down and then helping him stand. Orochimaru opened his eyes, trying to turn to see who had rescued him. But he was immediately encircled by the Sound Four and taken inside, followed by several more ninja. But still, Orochimaru couldn't see who had caught him halfway down the wall. And…there was someone else missing…where was Kabuto? He wanted to see him, to ask him how everyone had known that something was wrong tonight and gotten up…doubtless he would know. But Orochimaru was swept up in his guards' motion, almost being dragged inside and into the medical ward. "I'll get Kabuto," Kidomaru promised, and left the group. It was decided that Sakon and Tayuya would stay in the room with Orochimaru until Kabuto came in, and then Tayuya would leave and join Jiroubou in guarding the door. Sakon seemed to understand that Orochimaru was frightened; he guided him to a chair against the wall, next to the door, and helped him sit. Orochimaru sat quietly, not saying a word, one arm around his stomach, as if he was in pain, and the other arm propped up on his knee. The fingers of that hand were intertwined with his hair, pushing it back from his face. Orochimaru was almost doubled over, and he looked sick to his stomach. Sakon crouched next to him, gently placing one hand on Orochimaru's back and the other on his hand. He wrapped his fingers around Orochimaru's wrist, softly, but firmly, pulling it away from his face, freeing his hair to fall over his shoulders. Sakon then reached up, cupping Orochimaru's face in his hand and turning it to face him. Orochimaru gave him a hiss of warning and jerked his head away, but Sakon had caught the signs of distress Orochimaru was sending out. His head hung despondently. His lips quivered as if he was about to cry. His eyes were wide, pupils dilated and golden irises almost watering. His shoulders shook, as if Orochimaru was cold. He was trying to hide it, but Sakon and Tayuya could still see Orochimaru was in pain.

"Wanna talk about it?"

A kunai slammed into the wall behind Tayuya, but the redhead merely raised an eyebrow. "Shall I take that as a definitive 'no,' or should I wait for the snakes to attack me?"

Sakon turned and glared at Tayuya, giving her a look to cut stone. "Don't torture him," he hissed. Then, his expression softened, and he turned back to Orochimaru. "Are you okay?" he asked. "Did he hurt you?"

Orochimaru shook his head, but Sakon wasn't sure which question he was answering. 

"Are you okay?" he repeated. All he got in response was a shrug. Sakon sighed and thought for a moment, bowing his head. There were three ways to do this: direct questioning, indirect questioning, or wait until Kabuto got there and give it some gossip. Sakon decided on direct questioning. It might get him a few pricks in the side, but they were easily dealt with. "Orochimaru-sama, can you please answer me? I need to know what happened to you."

Just then, Kabuto walked in.

Sakon sighed, standing up and letting Kabuto get to Orochimaru. Well, that was putting it lightly-Kabuto rushed over to Orochimaru the second he walked into the room, immediately taking him in his arms and asking him what happened, if he was okay, if he was hurt, if Itachi had done anything to him-

Orochimaru silenced him with a harsh bite to the hand.

One of Kabuto's hands had been on the side of Orochimaru's face, which he promptly took advantage of and bit nastily. Kabuto froze, realizing his mistake of crowding Orochimaru. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I was just worried about you…did you know he was coming?"

Orochimaru found he didn't want to answer the question.

Even so, he nodded, resulting in a cry of horror from Kabuto. "You knew, and you still went back to that room?! All alone, no guard, not even one person who knew what was happening? Orochimaru-sama, really! You could have slept somewhere else, you could have put jutsus on the room, you could have gotten ninja to guard you-! Kami-sama, what could he have done to you, given the chance-?"

"Shut up!"

Orochimaru had finally burst, and slapped Kabuto away as hard as he could. He backed away several steps, staring at Kabuto with a burning hatred in his eyes-misplaced hatred, no doubt, but Orochimaru was confused, frightened, and hurt. Kabuto looked shocked, but remained silent. He suspected there was more.

"I can't deal with you right now!" Orochimaru continued, after a stinging moment of silence in the room. "Don't you dare yell at me! Do you have any idea what was going through my mind right before that animal came in and tried to rape me again?! Don't you dare try to tell me that I was so stupid about this and that, and that there was so much I could have done to prevent this-and what happens when that all fails? Itachi gets angry, and takes it out on me. He slaughters everyone around me, and then gets rough with me. Do you think I want that to happen? And where would I go? If I was supposed to sleep somewhere else for the night, do you not think he would find me? Honestly, Kabuto! You're smarter than this! Just…just leave me alone, don't talk to me!"

Orochimaru turned and fled the room, shoving Sakon out of the way. The Sound ninja stumbled back, reeling mostly from the shove, but also in shock. Orochimaru had just given Kabuto a thrashing!

Tayuya glared and ran out the door after Orochimaru.

Kabuto sighed and collapsed in the seat Orochimaru had vacated, putting his face in his hands. "I know I shouldn't be so upset with him," he whispered, as much to himself as to Sakon. "But I can't believe he neglected to deal with the problem so much…! I know he has a point, that Itachi would take it out on him, but still…" Kabuto exhaled slowly through his palms, then sat up and let his arms fall across his legs. "I'm going to talk to him," he announced, standing up and exiting the room.

Sakon watched him go, totally and completely lost.

A/N: Guess what! You need to review, otherwise the next chapter doesn't come! Just so everyone is aware, I only update a story if I get one review per chapter. And there's even some smut next chapter!! : ) I promise, it's not that hard to just hi the button and give me a sentence or two about what you liked, didn't like, whatever. As long as there is no disrespect, I welcome all reviews with open arms. Anonymous reviews are enabled; no excuse!!