IV. Getting Warmer

Itachi woke with a sore back. He groaned a little as he got up and realized he'd been sleeping slightly curled up on his bed, and when he took off his shirt and twisted around, his lower back was slightly red. Sighing, he put the shirt aside and spotted the coat with the fur flung somewhat haphazardly over the back of one of his chairs. His body flooded over with a warm feeling, starting from the pit of his stomach and then slowly spreading until it reached his fingertips and toes. Maybe it was the fireplace. Or maybe it was the fact that there were no barriers between him and Deidara. Either way, the atmosphere was just something Itachi had never experienced before, and it left him a little curious over whether or not it could happen again tonight. He shrugged the thought away – it was a chance happening. After that encounter, Itachi was doubtful over whether or not Deidara would venture to the kitchens ever again. The guy had seemed pretty carefree, sure, but Itachi had only talked to him for about fifteen, twenty minutes before he up and left. He picked up the coat and replaced it in his closet.

"Good morning, sire,"

Itachi jumped a little and turned around, glaring at the doorway. Impeccable and intrusive as always, Danzo bowed when the Uchiha's effeminately lashed eyes rested on him with a laser-beam stare.

"I'm pleased to see you're awake already,"

Itachi grunted in response and pulled a crisp, long-sleeved white shirt over his head. It, of course, was tailor-made to fit him perfectly and it sat on him like a second skin. Since it was getting cold lately, he had to wear this shirt underneath, because it always kept him warm. He didn't know what it was made out of, but it kept the winds out.

"The Vice-Admiral and his family are in the process of getting ready, so if you'd quickly make your way down to the dining room and greet them for breakfast, that would be superb,"

Itachi nodded and buttoned the second shirt up to his chin. He knew exactly what needed to happen whenever he had guests, so he had no idea why Danzo always came up and told him.

"Fortunately for you, however, you need not do anything with them for the entire day, with meal times being the exception. The young ladies and the wife want to go shopping for new clothes to wear—they've heard about the debutante event coming up—and the Vice-Admiral would like to go hunting,"

Itachi nodded again. He finally put on a thick, embellished black coat and buttoned it up, following Danzo out of his room. They went down the stairs, arriving at the foyer, where the floors were being scrubbed and polished. There were a couple of men coming in and out, some balancing boxes in their arms, and some carrying sacks. Itachi kept his eyes peeled for the waterfall of blonde hair, but the only blonde he saw was on the head of a guy that was too bulky to be Deidara. The Duke gave up, and on entering the dining room, saw that his younger brother was already there.

Sasuke took a sip out of his cup. Itachi didn't have to look in it to know it was pure black tea. The two brothers nodded to each other as a greeting as silver plates carrying bread rolls and fruit. Feeling a little more pumped with the knowledge he wouldn't be holed up in a drawing room with the guests for another three hours, Itachi was seriously considering getting out of the castle to get to know the place more. From the outside in.

"Good morning, everyone,"

The Uchihas pushed their chairs back slowly and plastered almost identical, thin smiles on their faces.

"Get up!"
"I am up, un!" Deidara kicked the fraying blanket off in annoyance and sat up, glaring at the head groom. He slid his slightly numb feet into a pair of wool-lined boots and sighed loudly. He knew he shouldn't have gone out in the middle of the night for a snack, because his head pounded, his eyes drooped and his nose was blocked. Clearly, he hadn't gotten enough sleep, and it felt like his head had only just hit the pillow when the bell rung for him to get up. He trudged outside yawning and rubbing his eyes, because somebody had told him through his half-awake stupor that the Vice-Admiral was going to go hunting, and he needed to saddle the creature up, since it was under his charge. Deidara found the horse right where he'd left it. It had already been fed, and Deidara set about readying it for its rider. When that was done, he sat on top of the barrel nearby and waited for his cue. When somebody finally whistled, Deidara had gotten himself together as best he could before he tugged a little on the reins and headed outside. The icy air bit his face and his cheeks reddened instantly. He looked up across the field, and his heart thudded a bit when he met the Duke's eyes. He looked a lot less cold than Deidara, but looked as tired as he did. The blonde offered a wobbly smile before handing the reins over to Tezuko, who mounted immediately.

"This way," the head groom held out his free hand and the duo headed off. Deidara shoved his gloved hands in his pockets and shuffled around, trying to keep warm.

"Did you get much sleep, then, un?" Deidara asked, his tone as jovial as ever. "Didn't stay out too late, hmm?"

Itachi scanned the fields slowly. Despite the fact it was winter, the grass was still as green as ever and were amazingly well-kept. In the far distance, he could see a vineyard.

"I ate the toast and left," he answered without making eye contact. Deidara nodded as if he was interested in the simple answer, and wondered if that was his cue to leave. He did, after all, have things to do, but if he was in the Duke's presence, nobody could nag him. But again, did the Duke even want him there? The guy made no indication. If Deidara could read minds, however, he would know that Itachi wanted him to stay more than he wanted him to leave.

"Another day, huh?" Deidara continued, trying to quash the awkward silence between them, even though it wasn't unusual between a Duke and his subjects. "What are your plans, hmmm?"

"None,"

"None…?"

Itachi nodded. He looked at the blonde man, who was going a bit blue at the lips, and voiced something he would never have thought could come out of his mouth.

"Come inside,"

"What?" Deidara looked up from his feet to Itachi. It was certainly an odd thing to suggest. Itachi faltered a little.

"You…it's cold out here,"

Deidara's breath came out misty, and no matter how weird the offer was, he couldn't say no.

As soon as Itachi came through the door, a page bowed politely and handed him a stack of sealed envelopes, giving Deidara a look, before leaving. The blonde couldn't help but notice how exasperated Itachi always looked, and wondered if he was meant to be following the guy when he headed up the central set of stairs. He decided to follow. The Duke was shuffling through the envelopes, looking at the addressors, and halfway up the stairs, he paused and handed Deidara two of them.

"Hold them for me," was all he said before he continued up the stairs. Deidara, still completely bewildered over what exactly was happening, looked at the envelopes and found they were all invitations to some sort of social gathering. It made him smile. If the Duke didn't take any fancy to the girls that visit him, it would only be natural to assume that he would never accept invitations to debutante balls. A man bowed and opened a door, which revealed a warm room with an actual, immense fireplace and ceiling-to-floor shelves stacked with books and papers. Itachi sat himself behind the huge desk against the opposite wall to the door and Deidara sat in one of the chairs across from him, placing the envelopes in front of him.

Itachi paged threw a couple of the letters before piling them in one corner. He pulled out a piece of parchment.

"If I ever get invites," Itachi said while he was searching around his drawers for a writing instrument. "I want you to hide them. But keep them,"

"Huh?"

Itachi didn't look at him, making Deidara thoroughly perplexed. Is he giving me duties?

The Uchiha wrote something down, scrawling along the top of the paper, taking his time. He didn't address Deidara's clear confusion because he didn't know exactly what he was doing himself, either. When he had seen the stable-hand standing in the cold, something just came to him, and he just blurted out the invitation before he had time to even think of why he was doing it. It just all felt like something he was meant to do. Now that he was just sitting there, he had time to collect his thoughts, and in the end concluded that maybe he wanted Deidara…to be near him, as strange as that sounded, as some sort of confidante, since to everyone else Itachi would be suspicious that they were dispatched by Danzo to spy on him or something equally as invasive. He and Deidara had met in such a spontaneous way, Itachi doubted he had anything to do with Danzo. The Duke had no idea what prompted him to even want a confidante in the first place, but he didn't even try to decipher it.

Perhaps as the days pass, it will become clear.

Outside the door, Danzo stood, listening. There was a creak as somebody shifted in their chair. Danzo had seen it all happen. He'd seen the look in Itachi's eyes – it was something he'd never seen before. It made him incredibly curious, but he didn't know the meaning behind it either. He made a mental note in his head to tell the head groom when he came back from the hunting group that Deidara would no longer be working in the stable. Danzo wasn't sure if this was part of Itachi's intentions, but it was his intention, as his advisor, to make the best out of an odd situation. He licked his lips and made another note to visit Deidara later. Alone.