Dreamcatcher

By Airyo

Lessons in Wishing - 3

Itachi stared at the flickers of ire across her face, fascinated by the strange play emotions. Her eyes were glazed with a subtle genjutsu, and it was normal that she would be annoyed.

But everything else was just as strange as he'd expected.

The first few illusions he'd tested for their first meeting were too subtle, and only worked as they should in trivial shifts - smelled things that weren't there, feeling sleepy...etc. While both of them agreed that any Sharingan usage was too soon, Hinata was the first to suggest a larger genjutsu. All he'd placed on her was an illusion that hid him from her, and he allowed more chakra than before.

Rather than fainting again, she began muttering phrases to herself. "Why isn't he here...late...rude..." Then she stood and began circling the tree they sat underneath. Itachi followed a few paces behind. While his genjutsu would never be so faulty as to accidentally alter her perception of the terrain, he found himself worried that she might fall.

Also, he found himself unable to watch the hurt on her features each time she passed back around the trunk, her head hung low and fingers of one hand trailing over the rough bark as if it were the only thing keeping her upright.

When she sighed in defeat and began to head for the gate, he laid a light hand on her shoulder, silently dispelling the weave of his chakra around her.

"Hinata-sama?"

She paused, and then tensed as she registered the shift back to reality. Itachi quickly retracted his hand. Disorientation was common after genjutsu, and he didn't want to startle her further. Hinata took a slow breathe, in and out, and turned back to him with a small pursing of her lips.

"You were late, and I thought you'd forgotten about me," she reported flatly, eyes downcast. They both knew that he wouldn't forget - she'd mean "abandoned". The worst part was that she didn't seem to be accusing him. The resigned disappointment in Hinata's voice made a corner in Itachi's chest ache. He wasn't sure if it was anger or pity or maybe both.

"Ironic, considering that in actuality, you were the one who arrived after me," he said gently. "I did not realize that my genjutsu would perpetuate your sense of competition over something trivial like punctuality."

"Being punctual is the polite thing to do," she replied. But her lips were quirked in a reluctant smile.

That was the first genuine smile he'd managed to pry from Hinata, and somehow, he knew it was a rare sight.

Hinata fidgeted under his perusal. "What did you learn from that genjustu?" she asked. Itachi blinked and quickly gathered his thoughts. While he'd already drawn many conclusions and theories, the genjutsu had not been at the forefront of his mind at all. He must be more fatigued than he realized.

"You are aware that your mind warps genjutsu?" She nodded.

"Yes, everything is amplified and takes better hold for it since my mind seems to be especially good at filling the gaps. I've never been able to dispel any genjutsu on my own."

Itachi tilted his head. His genjutsu did not contain gaps, especially on such a small scale as what he'd placed on her. And while it was true that genjutsu relied on the target's imagination to fill in the perceived gaps, that wasn't what occurred earlier. Hinata's mind had taken his illusion, and built an entire story around it, much like how an oyster would encase a grain of sand in layers of nacre to protect itself from the intrusion.

He suspected that all the other investigators were only focused on fixing this reaction, rather than understanding it.

"Alright," he said. "I've learned plenty for today. I will walk you home."

AN: OMG guys. You weren't supposed to figure everything out so easily, haha. Too smart.

-Also, one of you asked about Hinata's switch from "Uchiha-sama" to "Itachi-sama". I couldn't answer in private and forgot about it until now: Yes, it's a reflection of Hinata's perception of Itachi. She's angry at him, but she'd starting to see him as a person, not just "another Uchiha". It's very hard to keep Itachi at arm's length when he doesn't want to be. ;)