The bath scrubbed away layers of dirt and grime, and perhaps the first few layers of my flesh, but it didn't wash away my terror, nor did it warm my still-frozen blood. My heart was nothing but a block of heavy, painful ice in my chest now, and with each inhale, I felt a sharp stab. There were too many scents in the washroom; from citrusy shampoos to floral soaps, my nose twitched on the constant verge of a sneeze. My skin felt too clean, too soft, and the clean clothes were almost uncomfortable against it. I wasn't dressed in anything too florid; a long black tank top and pair of burgundy shorts. I could almost convince myself I was heading outside, back onto the streets to vanish into a crowd. I may catch my death of hypothermia, but at least I would look pretty on the sidewalk.

I winced as a heavy hairbrush passed through my hair again, catching on another snag and tugging it out. Kei murmured another apology, but they were blank, now. The woman was quick and precise in her work, all I could do was follow where she directed me. By the time she was through, I didn't recognize myself, nor was I ready to leave the sanctuary of the washroom, despite how nauseated all the soaps and other sudsy things were making me. The closest I'd ever come to staying clean was the occasional dip in a lazy cobalt lake, or a rushing river that was too cold to stay in long. Was this how things were going to be, now? Kept scrubbed clean and fresh? Or would it be the opposite, trapped in a dank room like a disparaged prisoner and caked in grime and my own filth?

I was losing the last vestiges of my hope, and my disconsolate thoughts were showing it. I was finding it too difficult to scrounge up some optimism, every time I thought of their name, it vanquished. The Uchiha were highly regarded and widely renowned, but they had their fair share of enemies that always came with the price of power and riches. The infamous name had touched the lips of everyone this side of the border. They owned a wide branch of businesses and they had people in every corner, from law enforcement to sending spies out on the streets. Few were brazen enough to oppose any Uchiha, out of sheer terror.

As all pure-blooded vampire clans did, the Uchiha were the possessors of an elite physical ability. I knew the name, but I wasn't sure what it was capable of. Every time someone started to speak of it, one of the older people would castigate them and warn to never bring it up again. Now, whenever I heard the name, it was when someone was whispering. "The Sharingan."

Had it been an arbitrary lackey from the Uchiha clan to stumble upon me, I might've had a weak chance. Those meek survival chances were gone the moment I'd heard his name. Sasuke's name was far from unknown; it was infamous, whispered off trembling lips or from a cold, admiring smirk from those who revered him. Itachi and Sasuke were the children of the clan head. Stories of their strength and skill spread far. Deadly, merciless, and trained into ruthless elites. I had never thought much of it. I thought I was too far below the reach of a noble, someone who would never waste their time with the riff-raff in the streets. But, despite class, everyone knew the Uchiha brothers' names. If tales were to go by, I could very well be dead by this time tomorrow.

"All done, my lady," Kei's voice snapped me from my dismal reveries, and I started at the compliment. I hadn't realized she'd set the brush down, and now her slim fingers were carding through my hair, not hitting a single tangle. I kept it cut short, trimmed to just around my chin and the back of my neck, but it could still become a monster of tangles despite my best efforts. I'm not sure my hair had ever looked so tame. "I'm afraid it's time we leave to meet with your brother. Come," she held out her hand as I stood from the chair she'd had me sitting in. I accepted the small comfort, and gave her hand a little squeeze while we walked down the hallway. It was all I could take and it was all she could offer. The drafty, chilly air made goosebumps rise on my arms and legs, and I found I missed my old, torn jacket.

We reached the door that Jasmine had disappeared through with Alex earlier, and Kei knocked with four short taps of her knuckles before she entered, tugging me behind her. Jasmine looked over her shoulder at the two of us before hurrying to step out of the way. Alex was sitting in a chair before a vanity, looking sullen, but some of the light returned to his eyes when he caught sight of me. He launched from the chair and darted around it towards me, and I noticed that Jasmine had dressed him in an…interesting way. I had expected something sharp, sleek—but, like me, Alex was wearing clothes that made it look like we were ready to return home, if home had existed. For a change, we looked like two teenagers instead of two scraggly animals living in squalor.

I tugged at the hoodie Alex had on, envious both of that and the jeans he was wearing. "You look good," I murmured, a proud smile on my lips. His hair had grown out a little over the years, only enough to get in his eyes a little. I brushed it out of the way, the strands sliding through my fingertips like silk. His hair was so dark that most would think it to be black at first glance, but in the sunlight, you could see the deep violet gleam. A knife of nostalgia spiked through my chest, then, and it struck me how much he resembled our father, all dark, handsome looks. My brother had grown up right before my eyes.

Now, I had to hand him to someone else.

I threw my arms around Alex and crushed him close, hiding my face against his shoulder. I wanted to apologize again, but I couldn't talk around the lump in my throat. How was I going to convince him it was going to be okay when I couldn't convince myself? Every time I struggled to remind myself that no sane person would waste that big a sum of money on someone just to kill them, my mind crept back to the badlands. Back to the horror stories about what masters did to their slaves, to personal pets; reading about the abuse, the cruelty, the violation—

These were people who could afford to buy a person, kill them, and buy ten more to do it all over again. I knew what monsters like that did to people like us. We were expendable, we were toys.

"Do you really think we're going to be okay?" Alex whispered, his face hidden in my hair. He sounded so small, and I didn't trust myself to have the right words that would alleviate his fear.

I took a deep breath and pulled back, cupping his face in my hands. "You said it yourself," I told him, "we've made it through hell and back, we can make it through this." I leaned forward and kissed him on the forehead, savoring the brief moments we had left. "Itachi is a powerful man with countless responsibilities, a man like that has a lot on his shoulders. You may hardly see him."

I knew that was an overly hopeful prediction, but I'd grown up using logic as a weapon against anxiety. However, I'd also listened to the rumors of his brutal skill, unmatched by hardly anyone. I was familiar with the whispers about his cold ruthlessness, but Itachi was the first born and the next head of the Uchiha family. That was a lot to overtake and live up to. Surely a man of that caliber had a plethora of important work to see to, he wouldn't have time to waste on a teenager. Surely.

Alex's lips curled into a frown of disbelief. "If only we would be so lucky, the spoiled fucks would leave us alone. If Sasuke even touches you—"

"We will both be fine," I cut in, putting an end to a tirade before it began. I didn't want my brother worrying about me, I needed him to keep his head and focus on himself. He would need it to make it out of this. "I can handle everything thrown at me, and I know you can, too. I promise."

I hoped I wasn't a liar.

I relished in the few minutes I had with Alex, doing nothing but holding one another and soaking in the last moments of comfort we could get. I wasn't sure how often we would be allowed to see one another once they took us away. Deep down, I was afraid I'd never see Alex again, but my subconscious wouldn't allow that fear to bloom into a full thought. It would be the thing that broke me.

When Jasmine approached us and tapped Alex on the shoulder, our bubble of peace broke and shards of reality rained atop my head like glass. She, too, looked as solemn as I felt. With her hands, she pointed her index fingers at the both of us, and then pointed them to her shoulders before she turned and started for the door. I hadn't understood the gesture, though my brother had and he began to follow her. I hurried to follow behind him and, once close enough, I leaned near him. "Can she not speak?" I asked.

He shook his head. "They cut out her tongue."

Disgust curled in my stomach like a ball of snakes writhing, leaving me feeling faint. I asked no more questions, and the walk through the winding corridors was silent from then on. It wasn't until we turned the last corner and we came upon a daunting set of double doors that any of us spoke again. From behind us, Kei cleared her throat. "Don't speak unless they address you. I wish you luck." She touched first my shoulder, then Alex's, and then proceeded forward and joined her friend at the doors. I felt Alex's clammy hand slip into my own and clasp it, frightened yet strong. All I could do was squeeze back. With a dreadful, resounding creak, the two women pulled the doors open.

"Young masters, I present your purchases to you."

I felt sick, only instead of anything in my stomach, I was going to throw up my heart.

Inside the room past the double doors (of which I wished had stayed shut forever), there sat two men who both turned towards us. I felt glued in place, and I was content to stay there, if not for Kei nudging me forward. Immediately after stepping inside the room, the temperature sank a few degrees. My gaze landed on the man closest to the doors, where he sat straight and with his hands folded in his lap. He had his long, dark hair tied back from his face, where his expression was set into something neutral. As annoyed as I felt at the thought of anyone being capable of indifference in this, it was better than malevolence. He had to have been Itachi, he looked the eldest. His eyes were not the frightening blood-red I'd anticipated, but rather a deep, warm black. They shifted from me and towards Alex, and with a subtle cock of his head, Itachi stood from his seat. I stiffened as he straightened and approached us, the way he walked reminded me of the kings and queens I used to read about in fairy-tales as a little girl. A regal, self-assured stride, as if hundreds of eyes were watching yet he noticed none of them.

My gaze snapped from Itachi and to the other young man, still seated, when I heard him move and uncross his legs. His appearance caught me off guard for a moment. His face was softer than Itachi's, younger, but when he raised his eyes and caught mine, it almost made me choke. A violent shudder wracked through my body, the cold intensity of the young man's eyes was utterly inhuman. In the second between him catching my gaze and me trying not to vomit on the floor, I watched his eyes narrow with obvious disapproval. Warning bells began to ring in my head; a mistake, I'd already made a mistake. Even dirty orphans knew that slaves were not to look their masters in the eye.

I raised my chin and steeled myself to hold his impenetrable gaze. If it was the last thing I did, I wouldn't give anyone the satisfaction of knowing they frightened me. A muscle in the young man's jaw tensed, a small reaction, but it offered me some semblance of satisfaction. Out of the corner of my eye, a shadow crept into my vision, and I broke my focus to find Itachi only a few steps away. He had a good few inches on both Alex and I, and for someone of that stature, he moved without hardly a sound. My first instinct was to put my arm out in front of Alex, as if that would do any good at all, but it was all a big sister could do. Is there anything you wouldn't do to protect your siblings?

From behind Itachi, Sasuke stood, his expression set into a scowl that made my hackles rise. Fight or flight was trying to override my manual senses, and although my blood was finally thawing, it was only because of the adrenaline scorching through my veins. In those three seconds, I had already planned a way to put myself between my brother and these two men. I prayed that they killed me first, and that Alex would have long enough to figure a way out, if the sight of my death did not traumatize him.

If not for Itachi raising his hand, palms outward, maybe that's what would have played out. "Relax," he spoke in a low, modulated voice that made the tension in my muscles melt enough that I wasn't wound like a bowstring. "I have no intention of hurting him." Itachi's eyes passed from me towards Alex, leaving me to bristle with nothing but the words of a stranger to ensure my brother's safety. I wasn't comforted. "Please follow me, I'm sure you're both eager to leave this place," Itachi held an arm out, gesturing that Alex walk forward.

I shared a look with Alex, our fingers unlacing and falling away from each other as he took a reluctant step ahead. It was the weakest I'd ever felt in my life, with no way to save my brother, no way to protect him from this crushing burden. I stood rigid, watching as Alex walked ahead of Itachi, and away from me. Itachi never put his hands on Alex, but his distance did little to soothe my trembling muscles that all ached to do something, anything. My parents, if they could see me from wherever they lay in the afterlife, would be sick with disappointment in me.

As if he could sense my distress, Itachi glanced over his shoulder towards me. He gave me a single nod, but he was gone so quick that I couldn't be sure if I'd only imagined it. It reminded me of an act of solidarity—a silent promise in that one action. I wanted fervently to believe in that. With the two of them gone, I found that the chill in the room returned to dig its way into my skin. I'd had a barrier between myself and Sasuke, but now with that gone, I had to face the brunt on my own with nothing but my bare hands and teeth. They weren't all that intimidating on their own.

Speaking of the devil, I heard a brisk sigh and turned my attention back to Sasuke, who'd turned to glance after our respective siblings. I couldn't help the ire that boiled over. "What is it, are you already bored?" I asked in a clipped tone.

His eyes cut to the corners to look at me, as if to scrutinize me before he decided to waste his energy to turn and face me. I lifted my head in an air of defiance, as apathetic as I could make myself in the face of that inexorable gaze. In that second, I garnered a large bout of understanding for prey animals who froze in the face of a predator. His glance traveled across me, gauging, before he reached my face again. I regretted my decision to look him in the eyes; now if I didn't, it would be like giving up. His lips pulled into a small sneer once he appeared done with his appraisal. "I don't tolerate disrespect, girl," he said. "I suggest you get that through your thick skull before you make a mistake you regret." His voice was so quiet that it was terrifying how it seemed to fill the entire room. Fresh goosebumps covered my skin for the second time that night, but they were not from cold.

I felt my lips twisting into a sneer of my own. "I have a name—can't you read? I'm sure they put it on one of those files." I hadn't yet decided if I wanted to die, or if I had merely reached the end of my rope. How could anyone look so callously at slavery, and have the gall to act so arrogant that they wouldn't even use your name? I couldn't stomach that, my pride wouldn't allow it. My pride was a tad suicidal at the best of times.

Those were the right (or wrong, rather) words to get a reaction from Sasuke. His sneer dropped into a scowl and he started towards me. He did not move with the same regality of his brother. He moved like a carnivore, something powerful and invincible and who knew it. It took every bit of my willpower to not step backwards when he came up on me, almost toe to toe. My head tipped back to look at him, and for a moment, I wondered if those poor slave women would have to clean up my dead body.

"I will call you whatever I wish," he hissed, the hostile sound made me pin my ears down against my hair, where they disappeared against the same reddish hue. "You're nothing but a slave, don't forget that."

Well, I was trying, but he was making it kind of hard, you know? I swallowed the thick lump in my throat. "I'd rather have that title than a spoiled princess," I grit out, unable to find where the line was before I'd gone too far. A coarse growl rose from Sasuke's chest and my eyes widened at the furious, dangerous sound. In the blink of an eye, his hand shot out and clamped around my wrist. I gasped in shock and some pain, but that was all I had time to do. He turned on his heel and dragged me behind him, leaving me no choice but to stumble along. I doubted he'd stop if I did fall, and the thought of Sasuke ripping my arm off wasn't' all that appealing. His hand was like steel around my wrist, just as cold and twice as strong. If I didn't have a bruise around my wrist by the time he let go, it would be a miracle.

Sasuke didn't slow down even when we got outside the building. I felt disappointed that the air outside was no warmer than the air inside, but at least it was fresh and didn't reek of sweat and hopelessness. By the time Sasuke reached the car, my teeth were chattering from the winds outside. I wasn't dressed for the wintry night weather. Without another word to me, Sasuke wrenched the back door of the car open and yanked his arm forward, tossing me inside. I cried out when I landed, having banged a lot of parts of myself on my way in. I couldn't tell what was aching by the time I was sure I wasn't going to collide into anything else. The car door shut after me and I drew my legs close to protect them from any further bruising.

I cradled my wrist to my chest while using my free hand to push myself up into the seat. A hand touched my shoulder, then, and I flinched back with a startled gasp.

"It's me! It's just me," Alex scrambled to reassure me. I looked up to see him pressed up against the opposite door, I bet it was all he could do to avoid me when I came crashing into the car. Sorry for that rough landing. "What the hell happened? Are you hurt? Let me see," Alex reached for my wrist, but I leaned away, denying his assistance.

"It isn't anything serious," I sighed, righting myself to sit in a somewhat comfortable position. I felt like I had gotten hit by a train. Then, after that, God's vengeful hand had come punching through the heavens and drove me into the ground. It might've been a graceless way to say it, but I wasn't feeling all that graceful. Neither of us had recovered from earlier in the day, any further injuries weren't welcome. Granted, had I kept my mouth shut... No. That wasn't my fault, nothing of what happened to us was our fault. I had to remember that. I wouldn't absolve blame.

I got a good look around myself, then. A sheet of black glass separated the back seat from the front seats of the car. I couldn't hear or see anything from the front, so I could assume that Alex and I were safe from eavesdropping as well. "He won't even call me by name," I muttered under my breath, bitterness powdering my tone.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Alex wrap his arms around himself. "Maybe if we don't fight, they won't do anything to us," he suggested, glancing at me with nervous uncertainty.

I turned my face away from Alex so he wouldn't see my sneer. If I didn't fight, I'd have nothing left. Fighting was all I knew how to do, all we'd ever done. "Maybe. You're quiet enough for Itachi to forget you're even there," I said. It garnered a weak laugh from him, so it was worth it.

I leaned my head on the window and stared up into the night sky. At some point, I switched that black canvas for that of the backs of my eyelids, because sometime later I was getting jarred into consciousness by the car stopping. Bolting upright, I dug my nails into the interior of the seat, my bearings still ricocheting in my head in a mismatch that I couldn't yet make sense of.

Alex rested a hand over mine and muttered a reassurance. "The car's stopping, we must be there." Alex ducked his head to try and see out of the window. I wasn't as curious. Well, mostly not as curious. I leaned my head down to Alex's shoulder to get a peek, too. Outside, a few glimmering light posts lit up the pathway to a looming mansion. Alex's tail flicked back and forth like a sleek whip, his eyes gleaming as he drank it all in. "I could get lost in a place like this, it's like a castle," he murmured. I winced at the charm in his tone, too unwilling to break it to bring up any misgivings.

I didn't share my brother's enchantment, but I couldn't fault him for it, either. The only buildings I'd ever seen that were half the size of this place were apartment buildings, and they couldn't hold a candle to this place's beauty. While we were busy getting lost in it, the door pulled open, startling us both. I recoiled from the burst of wind. From outside, I heard a soft murmur that I couldn't decipher. Whatever the words were, they coaxed Alex out of the car. He climbed out beside Itachi and I watched him shuffle behind the older man towards the mansion, his arms still wrapped around himself. A shadow blocked the light into the car then, and I leaned away from the open door. You know, the car was a nice place, it'd be all right to live in—

I heard Sasuke's impatient sigh, the only warning I received before he reached into the car to take my arm again and pull me out of it. "I'm about sick of you yanking me around everywhere," I snapped with a wince.

"If you wouldn't act difficult, perhaps I wouldn't have to," Sasuke hissed back. Well, by then, I was ready to quit acting difficult, but Sasuke continued to haul me up to the front door, where Itachi stood waiting on us.

"Try not to break her, Sasuke." Itachi spared a glance towards Sasuke as he unlocked the door. The warning succeeded in little else than to annoy Sasuke, who snorted under his breath. That front door opening was the most beautiful sound in the world to me, as ecstatic as I was to escape the chill outside. Alex uttered a quiet sound of awe the further we got inside, his eyes wide and entranced as he looked around at the grand staircases and royal colors. Dark blues and shining golds, marble tile, and heavy drapery with careful embroidery stitched into it decorated the interior of the mansion. The corridor continued straight, to a pair of double doors, while on both the left and right sides there were two staircases that led up. The embroidered symbols, white and red, looked like an insignia of sorts. Even Sasuke still grasping my arm, like he really thought I could somehow make a run for it, didn't dampen my admiration. Never had I set foot in a place so…so stunning.

"It's beautiful," Alex murmured. Itachi paused and glanced towards him, and for just a moment, I thought I saw his eyes soften.

"Come with me, Alex. Your new quarters are upstairs," Itachi nodded his head towards the staircase on the right and began to ascend. It was obvious he had more faith in Alex than Sasuke had in me. Or, at least, Itachi wasn't half as impatient and quick to anger. That was enough for me to breathe easier, if only by a shred.

Alex lingered for a spell, looking like he was debating for a split-second what he should do before he came to his decision. He approached me first, his ears flattening down when he glanced behind me at where Sasuke stood. "I love you," Alex murmured.

I leaned up and pressed my forehead to his. "I love you too," I whispered, "stay safe." After our goodbyes, he broke away from me and trotted up the stairs, where I was surprised to find Itachi had paused to allow Alex that moment between us. I looked after them even when they'd disappeared around the corner. In all honesty, I subscribed to no religious beliefs, but I hoped my prayers would get heard by something, all the same. Please, keep my brother safe. In the long run, I should've kept some of those prayers for myself.

A harsh shove sent me stumbling to the side, towards the staircase to the left. I had to catch myself on the railing. "Hurry up," Sasuke ordered when I turned a cold look on him. His impatience was enough incentive for me to get my footing sorted and start moving. The whole "getting dragged up the staircase" thing sounded like it'd be a good time and all, but I'd still rather avoid it.

"It wouldn't kill you to be a little gentler," I snapped over my shoulder. I caught the beginning of a smirk as it spread over Sasuke's face before I turned around, but it was enough to send a chill down my back and make me shut my mouth. At the top of the stairs, the hall was too dark to make much out. Sasuke's hand on my shoulder was likely all that kept me from smacking into anything down the hallway. When he reached the first door on the right, he reached for the knob and pushed it open. I slinked inside the room before he had to tell me, and he followed, clicking the door shut behind him. For about two seconds, the room was pitch black, and I worried it was going to turn out to be a dungeon of some sort, after all. Before I could spiral down that panic road, Sasuke flipped a switch and bathed the room in light.

I cringed when the suddenness seared my eyeballs, but after blinking away the spots in my vision, my eyes widened with surprise. It was a bedroom, bigger than any I'd ever had the luxury to set foot in. It was largely barren, aside from the bed, a desk and chair, and a bookcase that took up most of the right wall. If I were ever so privileged, I would have decorated every corner of a bedroom this size. On the left wall there was another door, one that I assumed led to a bathroom. I must've spent too long shell-shocked, because soon, I heard a chuckle from behind me. "Haven't you ever seen a bedroom, dog? Or have you spent your whole life in an alleyway?"

I started to roll my eyes before registering exactly what I'd heard. "What the hell did you call me?" I turned on Sasuke with a hateful snarl, where he was still standing near the door. He didn't even flinch in the wake of rage. He hardly cocked a brow.

"What's the matter, are you deaf, dog?" he repeated the ugly word and something in me snapped. I hated the word, I hated the smug smirk on his spoiled mouth, and I hated my awful situation.

"I can't believe you," I growled, my teeth bared in a feral warning, "I have a name, and you damn well know what it is, so start using it!" I felt like I was a child throwing a tantrum, but I wouldn't let myself accept his condescension. I deserved at least keeping my name, if this–this monster was going to take away everything else, he could at least allow me to keep the last thing that was mine.

There was one thing I forgot—a vampire was fast, faster than any other race. Unfortunately, Sasuke was more than happy to remind me. I'd hardly blinked before he was in front of me, I hadn't seen him move an inch. I almost swallowed my own tongue in the initial shock. "Listen to me," Sasuke lowered his voice, scowling down at me with enough ice in his eyes to freeze me solid. I don't know if yelling could have ever been more frightening than that quiet voice, so cold and angry. "I don't have time to waste on stupid, disrespectful servants. I own you now, like the animal you are, get that through your head." He straightened up when he finished seething the words into my face. A bitter cocktail bubbled inside me; rage, disgust, humiliation, all ingredients for stupid decisions.

I slammed my palm against Sasuke's chest and put all my strength into shoving him. It was a shamefully wasted effort. He didn't budge an inch, the only reaction I got for my trouble was a surprised grunt. "Fuck you!" I shouted, "you can't treat me like this, like I'm nothing!" My eyes were starting to sting in my rage. All my turmoil that had built up since first getting captured (was that today? Yesterday? I couldn't even remember) was boiling over, now. I had nowhere to empty it except at Sasuke, and he was one of the worst options I could have had, and he couldn't care less about how I felt.

Sasuke slapped my hand away with all the ease of batting off a moth. "I'll treat you however I like, you mutt," Sasuke's voice was taking on an edge, his posture rigid as he narrowed his eyes down at me. He was losing his temper, I could see it, but I couldn't stop myself in time.

My lungs filled with air and fire, and I screamed, "my name is Amaya, you bastard!"

A palm cracked across my face like a hot iron. The hit was so powerful that the force knocked me to the ground and left me dazed, almost breathless from the pain. Hot tears welled in my eyes at the shocking flare of hurt that lit up the cheek I was now cradling, but I grit them back, always too stubborn. Sasuke towered over me, the hand he'd struck me with now clenched in a fist, and his stance still tense. Despite the pain in my cheek, I could see how much restraint he'd used in the strike—he was holding back. I never wanted to find out what it might feel like for him to use his full strength. I didn't dare to get up.

"I warned you twice. Don't try me again." After that warning, Sasuke turned away from me and headed for the door, but before he walked out, he turned to look at me over his shoulder. I steeled myself, jaw clenched tight, his eyes were hard as stone as he looked into mine. You'll sleep on the floor. Don't touch anything, am I clear?"

I nodded my head, unable to get find my voice. When Sasuke left, he slammed the door shut behind him, and I flinched at the booming sound. Several silent seconds passed until I moved, that slap had made every other ache in my body rise full force. I looked towards the window, where the glow of a full moon filtered in, and moved towards it. I had to use the edge of the window-seat to pull myself up enough to sit, where I drew my knees close. I was still trembling as I leaned my head against the glass and looked out towards the twinkling stars. They were polite enough to pretend the tear slipping down my cheek wasn't there. I sat there for god knows how long, repeating to myself over and over; I've dealt with worse, I can deal with this. I can make it through this.

The more I told myself that, the less I believed it.

"Alex, do you have any wounds I need to be aware of?"

I rubbed my hand over my other arm, feeling awkward and out of place in such an elegant room. I'd been in apartments smaller than this entire bedroom. Well, that could be a bit of an exaggeration, but that was beyond the point. I felt like a very mismatched decoration in an otherwise spotless room. Itachi had the grace not to comment on my discomfort. In fact, he'd hardly spoken to me at all, thus the question caught me a little by surprise. I shook my head, "I'm fine," I told him. Too bad for me, one of the bigger bruises I'd sustained in the fight with the compound guard earlier chose that moment to throb, and I winced. A suspicious glint flashed in Itachi's eyes, but he didn't press the subject.

"I'll believe you," Itachi started, "but if you're going to stay healthy, you should let me know about any problems. It's my job to ensure your health." Itachi looked away from me and towards his desk again, where he was shuffling through a stack of papers. Still dazed, I stared at his back for several seconds before realizing I was doing it. Chagrined, I averted my eyes and rubbed at the bruise on my shoulder. I couldn't bring myself to ask Itachi where I should sit, or if I could sit anywhere at all. I was still reeling from how civil Itachi had behaved towards me. Not that it meant anything, Itachi could turn with a snap of my fingers, and I was waiting for it. His current affable attitude only made me even warier. I'd seen the way his brother had lost his temper with Amaya.

Rage pulsed in my veins when I thought of the way that asshole had snatched my sister's wrist. Here I was, without even hearing a harsh word from Itachi, but she was trapped with a man who was doing god knows what to her. I couldn't be there to protect her, and I knew she was going to lose her temper and piss off Itachi's brother even worse. It made my stomach turn thinking of her by herself, and about spending the night on my own. I couldn't even remember when we'd last gotten separated like this. Sure, we broke apart sometimes in order to find food or to make a quick buck, but it was never more than a few hours. But, an entire night, and I couldn't even know if she was safe?

I had gotten so deep in thought that I didn't notice Itachi was talking to me until he rested his hand on my shoulder. I jerked under the touch and snapped out of my daze, sucking in a startled gasp at the sudden contact. Itachi withdrew his hand the second I flinched. "I didn't mean to startle you," he offered a small smile to recompense. "I have business to attend to. You look exhausted, I suggest you try getting some sleep for a while."

Still reeling, it took me a moment to register his quick apology, and the surprise from that muted his suggestion a little. He nudged past me then, and for a second, I juggled between what I wanted to do. Where should I sleep? On the floor? "W–where should I…?" I asked, stuttering the question out before Itachi could leave, but unable to complete it.

Itachi looked back with a surprised expression, but it soon narrowed into a darker one that made me start to panic. Great, I'd asked a stupid question and pissed him off. How was I supposed to know that—

"I'm not going to treat you like an animal. You may sleep on the bed." Itachi paused in thought for a moment, as if finding the right words. "Feel free to ask for what you might need, as well. As I said, it's my responsibility, and you deserve that much."

With that, Itachi closed the door and left me stewing in confusion. The bed? Responsibility? I hadn't ever heard of someone referring to a slave as their responsibility. Toy? Yes. Burden? Sure. Itachi wasn't anything like what I had come to expect, after seeing how slaves got treated and hearing sickening stories from runaway slaves that I met while I was living off the streets. I wasn't sure what compartment I should place Itachi in, yet. I wasn't sure if he even had one.

What I was sure of, though, was how exhausted I was. I approached the bed and peeled a corner of the cover back. Curling up into the silk sheets was as close to euphoria as I'd ever come, and hell, I'd be thankful if this was the best taste I got of it. I tugged the blanket over myself and buried my face into the pillow, content with my little corner of heaven for as long as I could have it. I was still a little too high strung to fall asleep right away, but my thoughts wouldn't drift from the very things stressing me out.

Would Itachi turn out to be the monster that the rumors painted him to be? Was I sinking into a trap of some sort and setting myself up to get hurt? Or could he possibly be as peaceful as he appeared?

Sasuke certainly wasn't. He behaved nothing like Itachi, and he'd already demonstrated his capability for violence. I knew Amaya, and I knew she could take care of herself…I hoped she could take care of herself. I hoped I could take care of myself.

Slowly, my eyelids began to grow heavier, until they were so heavy with somnolence I couldn't pry them open again.

Was it childish to hope for good dreams?