Serendipity
Chapter Nineteen:
"Hey Itachi, come inside." Tamaki welcomed Itachi and kitty into the weapon shop early Saturday morning.
She wasn't the only one there to greet him.
Neko-baa, for an old woman had quickly gotten to her feet to pull him into a hard hug. Talking fast about how happy she was to see him again. Itachi gasped when she gushed over him, pinching his cheeks, and demanding that he should come by more often.
Itachi didn't have the heart to push her away despite how much her hold on him hurt.
If Kisame had been there he would have made a snide remark on how taken old ladies always were with Itachi. Thank fully Tamaki managed to pull Neko-baa away from him and get her busy with something else. Itachi thanked her for the rescue. His other friends would have left him there to die.
Tamaki laughed, and told him to stop joking around.
He wished he was.
"So, what are you going to have me do today?" Itachi asked as he placed Kitty down.
The kitten stretched before looking up at Itachi, tail flicking from side to side. There was clear reluctance about walking on his own expressed on his little face.
Itachi had to resist picking him up again.
They had come here at Tamaki's insistence that Itachi help with some of the work preparation. Although she had not said what it was that she needed help with. Itachi, of course, was too nice to say no to her.
All Tamaki had insisted on was that he'd bring Kitty along.
Of course, Kitty wasn't happy to be included in the plans, but if it meant getting to hang out with Itachi, then fine.
He came along just for that reason.
"Oh, just follow me and I'll show you what to do. Shinko and Tenma are already on the field working on the new fence." Tamaki said while reaching for a bag of fertilizer.
"Let me help you," Itachi took two of the bags that she was struggling with, helping her carry them.
"Thank you," she smiled at him in gratitude. "Oh and my puppy is outside as well, I'm sure that Kitty will like hanging out with him," she suggested. She had not told Itachi all her plans, but if things worked out then she would let him in on how she wished for Kitty to date her puppy.
They would make an odd but cute couple, in her opinion.
She was also hoping that Neko-baa would explain to Itachi about a reading on his kitten. It might get him answers regarding Kitty's family lineage as well as his future. With a clear reading on that, she knew that her plan of playing cupid between their pets would work out nicely. Plus her suspicions on whatever secrets Kiba was keeping from her would be revealed.
But that was for later.
Right now they had work to concentrate on.
For now, just getting Kitty and her puppy together would suffice.
"Oh sure," Itachi clueless to her motives agreed, taking a moment to glance at Kitty to make sure that he was following him.
Kitty faltered, unhappy at what he was hearing. He hadn't gotten up in a fine morning like this to spend it away from Itachi. If it wasn't cuddling then he at least hoped for some kind of adventure together. Kitty dejectedly followed Itachi and Tamaki to the field.
The fertilizer was placed in another stack for later use. Tamaki handed Itachi work clothes and asked him to go get changed. While Itachi was busy doing that, Tamaki turned to Kitty. She carefully clipped a pink bow onto the back of his collar and picked him up.
Kitty growled low, his tail swinging back and forth, like a warning. He might not mind her too much, but he wasn't exactly happy at the fact that he was being forced to stay behind while Itachi went off to do who knew what.
What if there was trouble and Itachi needed his help.
Why should he have to stay back anyways?
She smiled at his angry expression. "Hey Kitty, why don't I take you to the play pen? My puppy Kiba is there. I'm sure you'll have fun with them." she said, treating him so unfairly like a child. Or in his case, just some pet.
Kitty didn't have much of a choice in the matter, really.
For one, he couldn't rebuttal her. He was also just some pet, so what did it matter if he had an opinion in the matter.
It sucked.
In the next minute he was placed inside the so called playpen, a small fenced off area in the backyard. It was in the shape of a circled, neatly surrounding a dog house along with a few toys. It wasn't the biggest, but it wasn't that small of a space either.
Just fine for being a pet.
And that is how Sasuke and Kiba found themselves together and bored on a Saturday morning.
"You're owner is a slave driver," Sasuke meowed when he saw Tamaki leading Itachi and the others to whatever it was that she needed them to do. Sasuke felt disappointment well up in his chest. He had wanted to tag along and help Itachi out any way that he could. Damn it, he had wanted to stay in bed and sleep all morning with Itachi.
If only…
"Fuck you, dude," Kiba barked at the insult to his owner.
Sasuke suddenly stiffed with a realization. "Hey, you didn't tell her about me did you?" Sasuke narrowed his eyes on Kiba.
"Of course not," Kiba huffed, "It's going to be up to you to reveal yourself. I told you this already."
"Good," Sasuke sighed. It was better to make sure than not. He turned once more to look at Itachi, longing flashing in his eyes.
"Hey how come you haven't been coming to school?" Kiba asked, his eyes set on their owners preparing to depart towards Cat mountain, or whatever it was called. He wasn't all that interested in learning about a bunch of cat jerks, despite tolerating them because Tamaki loved them. "You've already missed the past three days,"
Sasuke turned to look at him, "My situation is complicated. There are times that I can't escape." Sasuke explained.
"Escape?" Kiba asked, bewildered at the idea. The thought that Sasuke might need to escape from his own home had never crossed his mind.
"That means that I ended up causing some trouble, enough of it that Itachi has been paying closer attention to what happens around me." Sasuke flicked his tail around. Honestly, he didn't mind all the attention he had been getting lately. He'd enjoyed the past three days being Itachi's center of attention again.
You could say that his plan was a success, even if Itachi and Izumi were still dating.
"What kind of trouble did you cause?" Kiba was curious.
"I kind of made him think I ran away. Although that wasn't my intention, he's been on my case since then." Sasuke said it like it wasn't that big of a deal.
"What was your intention then?" Kiba wondered, tilting his head. He didn't know Sasuke all that much, nor the situation that he had going on at home. It was still a mystery that he couldn't even fathom.
Sasuke was clearly irritated with the question because his tail began to move quickly up and down.
"Itachi is dating this dumb girl, her name is Izumi," his ears lowered, "Well I guess she's not dumb or anything but you know…" Sasuke trailed off, looking unhappy. "I just wish she'd stay away from him."
Kiba took pause.
The words Sasuke just said hitting close to home with his own situation.
"Yeah, I get it." He murmured.
There were plenty of guys around that had expressed their interest in Tamaki. She was so nice that she'd let these people take advantage of her. If he wasn't there, he'd be scared as to what could possibly happen to her.
Life was hard when you were a creature pinning after a demon.
Kiba glanced up at the position of the sun and soon his tail started to wag. Taking the moment to forget about their sadness, he decided to change the subject.
"Hey let's go somewhere more private where we can transform. I got some clothes scattered and hidden around that we can use. We could probably find something fun to do then just sit here and wait for our owners to come back." He urged.
"Won't Tamaki get upset that you left?" Sasuke asked. He knew for a fact that Itachi might not be too happy if he disappeared on him again.
"Tamaki knows I'm not really a dog, remember?" Kiba wagged his tail, going towards the opening of the gate. He nosed off the lock and gestured for Sasuke to follow. "Besides, she'll know I took you with me and assure your owner that you are fine."
Sasuke hesitated for a moment.
The last thing he wanted was to scare Itachi again.
"Come on dude, if you're that worried I'll have us back before your owner freaks out. They are going to be working until practically sun down. Neko-baa doesn't believe in eating before then," Kiba scoffed. "Come on, let's go do something fun!"
Sasuke sighed and nodded.
It would be boring to stay trapped all day here if that was the case.
He dashed forward to exit the playpen. Just as Kiba was pushing the doors closed, the sound of an angry bark stopped him. Across from them, a puppy similar to Kiba was barking with an annoyed look on his face.
"Who is that?" Sasuke asked.
"That's my twin brother, Akamaru," Kiba answered. "Hey bro, just stay in there. Sasuke and I are just going to go out and hang…"
Akamaru wasn't having it, motioning like he wanted to come along.
Kiba bared his teeth, barking back in the same manner.
Sasuke flicked his tail. "Why can't he come along?" he asked, confused as to why Kiba would want to leave his brother behind.
"Akamaru isn't…" Kiba shook his head. He hated having to talk about this. "He's special," he finally said.
Sasuke blinked, confused on the statement. "Just let him come, it'll be fine dude," Sasuke said.
Kiba hesitated.
In the end, Akamaru tagged along.
Once they were far from the house, they located the clothes and changed.
Kiba was wearing a large black sweater and dark gray sweats.
Akamaru looked like the spitting image of Kiba, except with a more happy and dopey look on his face. He had found a black shirt and black sweats to wear.
Sasuke had been lucky to find a white shirt, and some black shorts that fit him relatively well. Kiba was a bit bigger than him and most of his clothing didn't fit right.
"I didn't know you had a twin brother. You two look like exact copies of each other," Sasuke marveled as he stared at the happy go lucky Akamaru. He wouldn't have been able to tell them apart if it weren't for the different facial expressions that they wore.
Kiba pursed his lips, looking unhappy. "You know I sometimes think that demons have the right to not like us, as creatures. Akamaru is living breathing proof of that," the dog boy said, hands crossed over his chest in his upset.
"What do you mean?" Sasuke tilted his head, curiosity clear on his face. He would have never thought that Kiba would have such thoughts. Especially not about his brother in regards to what demons thought about them as creatures.
Sasuke had heard a few things.
He had experienced it and it had been burnt into him.
"Akamaru and I were born in the same litter. To the same human mother. It was three of us in total, and her body took a toll. The thing that took her was a dog creature, a monster she said, it wasn't something that she had wanted." Kiba sniffed, trying hard not to cry. "You have no idea how uncontrolled some creatures come off as, and they take advantage of the weak, and here we are, the result of that." He gestured to himself and his brother.
Sasuke quietly watched as Kiba kicked a rock in front of him, sending it flying to a tree. He didn't fully understand what Kiba was trying to say, but he understood that Kiba's mother had been wronged.
Much like his mother had been.
In his case, his demon father had hurt his mother because she had lied as to who she was. Demons really weren't that much better from creatures if you asked him. But his so called father had seemed so upset that he had children with creature traits…
Sasuke couldn't even remember his brothers and sisters now. Their memory seemed so far away from his reach.
"You know…" he started.
"I never met my father," Kiba cut in, "but he hurt her Sasuke. I hate him because he did this to my mother. She didn't deserve any of it." Kiba said, his tone angry and harsh, "You want to know the results, well its this! The things mother can do nothing about. My sister got lucky. She was born with her human side being the most prominent. She takes care of mother for us, but for me and Akamaru…" Kiba paused to look over at his brother.
It was so hard to put into words.
There was no way of saying it without sounding rude or even like he disliked his brother.
But no, Kiba loved his brother. He cared about him a lot and often felt sorry that his brother had been cursed the way he had been.
Akamaru was happily going around without a care in the world, unaware of his brother's turmoil over his mentality and state. Although he was in his human form, his dog ears, tail, and some extra fur around his neck, wrists, and ankles gave away what he was. He acted like he was still in his dog form, sniffing around trees and chasing butterflies.
It suddenly clicked in Sasuke's mind how Akamaru wasn't all there despite what he looked like.
"I got stuck with my creature form being the most prominent thing about me, I lose control based on my emotions, but Akamaru has no choice. His mind is so innocent, like a child. He can't speak, he expresses through his gestures…he…he's a creature through and through. No in-between, but you know he's an angel. He's pure, I can't leave him or the world would take advantage of him."
"Akamaru doesn't understand?" Sasuke asked.
Kiba shrugged. "I want to say that he does. To some level, he has to understand some things, but his experience of the world is different from mine, or yours. He not allowed to make decisions alone. He needs taking care of all the time. Despite being able to look like a human is more like a pet, in all aspects."
"Why is that? Most creatures seem sentient. Like they can make decisions," Sasuke muttered.
"Well, like our father made the choice to mate with my mother, the decision wasn't something that was right," Kiba crossed his arms with a frown on his face. "Creatures take. They are considered despicable because they go with instinct, primal… and that leads to…dangerous situations…"
Unwanted situations.
"Primal…" Sasuke muttered the word.
He sort of knew what it meant.
Kiba pursed his lips, his dislike for that word clear on his face. "They say creatures have no control over their primal instincts. That there is something that drives them to claim others sexually based on that, its insanity. No consent needed from their chosen person."
Sasuke scrunched his small nose, worry filling his eyes as he looked at Akamaru. To think that creatures had more reasons to be hated.
A primal instinct to claim another against their will.
Sasuke knew how wrong that was. It was one of the things that Itachi worked to stop in their society. When it came down to it, what was right, what was wrong wasn't always black and white. It was all just a gray area that left you wondering.
What exactly was that, could he and Kiba be contaminated with something that would make them become unreasonable?
He didn't want that.
But no, that made no sense.
That wasn't the whole picture.
It wasn't just creatures that showed a lack of regard for making the unwilling do what they didn't want to. Demons and humans did it as well. Sasuke knew this well because he'd been there to hear some of the cases that never seemed to be solved.
It wasn't right, by any means, but creatures were not the only ones at fault of such horrible things.
"Creatures take on the qualities of the animal or thing they are based on don't they?" Sasuke asked. He already knew that he was infused with some kind of cat so he was determined to learn all he could about himself based on that.
For his demon self, well, there was his father to fill in the missing information about that. Whether he wanted to find, meet, or even get revenge on the man, Sasuke still wasn't all that sure. A part of him burned to make his father pay for hurting his mother and siblings, another part of him wished to never see him again.
"Yeah, that's how it is," Kiba confirmed. "I feel connected to that animal as much as I am to humans and demons," Kiba said. "Akamaru is most connected to being an animal than human, it's a miracle he can even transform. I always believed it was his determination for him to be like me and our sister."
"I see," Sasuke turned to look at Akamaru.
Creatures with human form weren't uncommon. By any means, Sasuke had stumbled upon a few of them himself, but usually they were more like Kiba. Except that those creatures had made the decision to pull away from society and live in the shadows, by their own means.
It was hard for them to fit in and be accepted.
"When I met Neko-baa and Tamaki, I thought it was so lucky. They offered to take us in and teach us how to manage ourselves in this world. That's when I decided that I will grow strong. I want to take care of my brother, Neko-baa…and especially Tamaki," he whispered in the end, his eyes filling with love, and then sadness.
"Wait, does that mean that you and Tamaki are lovers?" Sasuke asked, wondering about their relationship.
He'd been curious for a while now. He knew Tamaki picked Kiba up from school, and took care of him. Tamaki knew that Kiba was a human and not just a creature.
Kiba blushed bright red that he resembled a tomato. "Fuck you dude!"
"The hell man, I was just asking," Sasuke glared.
Kiba stuttered, unable to look Sasuke in the face. "Sorry it's just that…I….want….I want…to be…with her." He breathed, his head tilted down as he thought about everything that stood in the way of that being a possibility. "But we're not…"
"Oh," Sasuke said, placing both hands on his hips with a smirk. "How do you plan on making a beautiful demoness like Tamaki yours?" he teased, trying to lighten the current conversation.
"I…." Kiba shook his head, determination filling his eyes. "I don't know but I will figure it out!" he declared. "And I will do it by making sure she falls in love with me too because I will not make the mistake my father made."
Sasuke snorted, shaking his head.
He couldn't blame Kiba.
Sasuke was kind of in the same position. Being a creature, wanting a demon in a world that looked down on such a relationship…it was almost funny. There was still so much to learn about himself and this world, could he actually win Itachi's heart?
He didn't want to hurt him.
But did he honestly have a chance?
"Hey Sasuke, you'll work hard to become great for Itachi right?" Kiba suddenly asked.
Sasuke blinked, looking at the dog creature with wide eyes.
"Yeah," he responded with no hesitation.
"Let's work hard together to make that goal possible then. Our dreams don't have to be just dreams. You don't have to be scared to tell Itachi who you are. We will become great." Kiba turned to give him that same determined look.
Sasuke nodded, a smile appearing on his face. "Right, we will."
The two continued walking, approaching a clearing amongst all the trees.
"Hey, do you think Itachi will let you out of his sights long enough to come to the field trip next week?" Kiba suddenly asked. "It's going to be at the museum of life developmental. I heard they have a great program for creatures to learn more about themselves. Shino and I already asked for permission to attend the private seminar, you should come with us,"
"Uh…" Sasuke hesitated, looking up at the sky. "We'll see,"
Kiba turned to watch him.
He wanted to ask more about Sasuke's private life, but decided to let it go. He could do that later. Sasuke didn't look like he was unhappy living with Itachi, and he was sure the boy knew that he could always ask Neko-baa and Tamaki for help if it ever became an issue.
"Cool," he grinned instead, "Come let me show you the lake!" Kiba led the rest of the way to a large pool of glittering water. Akamaru rushed past them to jump in first, letting out barks of laughter as he swam around.
Sasuke hissed, moving away from the splash back, but Kiba ran to jump in with his brother, screaming something about bombs away.
Sasuke had refused to follow their example, but that only led to him being thrown into the water by force. Sasuke was angry at the situation, and then attacked both brothers. Kiba and Akamaru taunted and teased Sasuke, laughing all the while at the kitten.
One little cute pissed off kitten they learned to respect when they were electrocuted.
Spending the day running around, play fighting, Sasuke found that time passed by fast.
Before he knew it they were all walking back to the play pen in their animal forms, in time to meet their owners. Sasuke was then happily eating out of Itachi's plate while standing on his lap. There was talking going all around him, but he didn't pay it much attention.
Itachi blinked at the pink bow on Kitty's collar, but didn't remove it. He found that it looked adorable on his kitten.
Kitty was half asleep by the time that they left, late that night. He vaguely remembered Tamaki whispering to Itachi, as if assuring him about something. Itachi responded to her before calling a goodnight.
Sasuke didn't much care for the world around him.
Right now happiness was being carried in Itachi's arms, and waking up there in the morning.
Good days always came to an end much too soon, in Sasuke's opinion.
Itachi, sadly, couldn't keep being with him all the time. By Monday he had to go back to work. A part of Sasuke had hoped for otherwise or that Itachi would at least take him along, but no such luck.
Sadly, with Itachi's departure, it meant it was time to go back to school.
That morning, Chiyo walked him to the waiting yellow school bus. His teacher was there, happy to receive the signed permission slip. His teacher eagerly ate up the reason for Sasuke's absence, accepting whatever story Chiyo spun.
"Remember, I won't be able to pick you up this evening. Get home as soon as you're able," Chiyo whispered harshly into his ear while pretending to hug him.
The fieldtrip meant that they would be returning late. Itachi would be working until nightfall, way past dinner time. Just in case though, Chiyo was going to stay and keep guard in order to distract Itachi if that was not the case.
Sasuke simply nodded at her instructions.
He got it, he'd run home in time so that Itachi didn't worry again. Finally, he was able to join his classmates on the bus. Several girls called for him to sit with them, but he took his chances and sat next to Kiba and Shino.
While some of the boys threw him dirty looks, the girls were there to defend him. It was still a strange dynamic Sasuke was experiencing, and getting used to, but it allowed him to do whatever he wanted without repercussion.
It even protected Kiba and Shino, so it was a win-win.
Both boys grinned at him in greeting, happy that he was able to make the field trip.
"Everyone, keep seated and safe while we get to our destination," The bus driver started to instruct all students on the safety of riding the bus. No one was paying much attention, too excited that they were not going to school. Although, it was a boring museum that they would go to, what mattered was that they would be outside of school.
Kiba turned to Sasuke, "Did Itachi give you money for the trip?" he asked with excitement. Going on trips like this always meant cool gift stores and treasures to bring back to give Tamaki.
Sasuke raised an eyebrow at that. "You know he doesn't know right?" Sasuke reminded.
"So you have no money?" Kiba asked, looking horrified.
"That sucks man, but I'll share some of mine," Shino offered. "My father always gives me a little extra just in case."
"Oh I'll share too," Kiba volunteered.
Sasuke let them rattle off what they planned to buy for lunch and maybe some souvenirs. The teacher had said they would all get a change to buy something to remember this trip by. Sasuke hadn't really thought much about what he might want to buy.
"I don't need you guys to lend me money, I have some," Sasuke assured when they asked him what he had in mind.
"Really?" Kiba asked, sounding like he didn't believe the short haired raven.
"What. Just because Itachi doesn't know doesn't mean he doesn't take good care of me." Sasuke huffed, crossing his arms as he looked away from his friends, opting to ignore them.
Kiba and Shino shared a look before shrugging and continued to talk about what they expected to see and learn on this trip, excited to get there.
Sasuke had to keep himself from blushing remembering earlier that morning.
The first thing he had done after Itachi left for work was jump into the basket of dirty laundry.
He had hunted down all of those extra dollar bills Itachi always forgot about. In fact, he'd been surprised to find a nice chunk of rolled up dollar bills in a pair of jeans Itachi had forgotten to wash for several weeks now. Not that he intentionally forgot them, but Itachi hadn't really unpacked his clothes from the trip they went to for when Deidara and Sasori's marriage.
Sasuke hadn't thought about emptying that bag out either, not until that morning and it had paid off.
Either way, Sasuke placed the clothes into the basket and spent a few good minutes, purring in self-satisfaction in the comfort of Itachi's dirty laundry, counting all the money.
After that, a few dollars richer, he'd left the apartment for Chiyo's.
He reluctantly took a quick shower before pulling on some blue jeans, and a black shirt that fell off his left shoulder, running his fingers into his short spiky raven hair. Today he didn't have to worry about having to wear a uniform or anything like that. He packed only what he thought he'd need, which was a small bag with a lunch and his money.
The morning had been a win for Sasuke.
The bus ride there was uneventful, Sasuke nearly fell asleep since the sun was so warm and no one was bothering him. That all changed when they arrived at the museum and Shino and Kiba dragged him along.
They joined the group with one of the other teachers, and followed along.
They got to see a lot of things based on the past, bones of creatures and demons that roamed the land once upon a time.
Sasuke had been intrigued by the rebuilt habitats and how scientist believed they had looked like in the past. The structures and stories of a lost city and what might have happened to them and their technology, as well as how it could happen in the future to them, had Sasuke entertained. He even picked up a few pamphlets on it and followed along to what would be the art section.
The art that was kept in this museum was only here for a moment, usually it got rotated with the art museums, but for a limited time it was brought here so more people had access to it. It was all delicate and a beautiful play of colors. Sasuke wondered if Itachi would have enjoyed such a sight…
Pillars and statues followed after.
Sasuke was listening to the origins of some of those large rocks when Kiba and Shino tugged him away from the group. Confused, he questioned them but he was told to stay silent and with another teacher they made their way to a different section of the museum.
"I didn't know that you were interested in learning more about creatures, Sasuke?" Umino Iruka, one of their teachers said. The man was said to be half dolphin and half human, a strange combination but one that many students ignored.
Their school was after all one of the ones trying its best to include all kinds of beings, and teaching to accept them.
"Uh yeah, I thought that since Shino and Kiba are my friends it would be best to learn more about how they are and not be biased…" Sasuke hoped he sounded convincing. By the way that Iruka's face lit up, he thought he did.
"Oh, that's wonderful Sasuke, a good reason to be inclusive and considerate of all your class mates, you truly are a mature and kind demon," Iruka praised.
Shino and Kiba shot Sasuke sarcastic smirks but he ignored them in favor of grinning and baring with their teacher's praise.
Iruka then talked about how he wished that more students wanted to learn about creatures, but sadly none of them had wanted to join them. He led them to a room, one that was more like a classroom.
Inside, a blond woman and a dark haired one were setting up.
"Welcome, my name is Tsunade and this is my assistant, Shizune," The blond one welcomed them. "Please take a seat while we get the lecture all set up." She let out a sigh, looking almost disappointed.
"Thank you Tsunade, sadly I'm afraid I couldn't get more students interested." Iruka bowed, looking at her apologetically.
"It's not your fault Iruka, not many children are comfortable attending because their parents still hold that prejudice, but hey, three is a start." She said, turning her attention back to the students. "Why don't you boys introduce yourself and tell me a bit as to why you want to learn about creatures?"
"I am Kiba, I am half dog so that means I want to learn more about myself." Kiba went first.
"Hello, I'm Shino. I'm part insect and wanted to know what that would mean for me in the future." He said. Shino had his fears about how his insect half might overcome what humanity he had. Insects, after all, were vastly different from humans.
Tsunade nodded her head, knowing full well the worries of these boys. She then turned to the last one, the little raven that was scowling and looked reluctant to speak. "And you?" she urged.
"I'm Sasuke…I wanted to join my friends and learn with them." he quickly said, avoiding eye contact. Tsunade quickly suspected that there was more that he wasn't saying, but let it go for now in favor of starting the lecture.
"We're ready," Shizune said.
"Alright, let's get started." Tsunade began her lesson by going over things that the school had already taught them. Her lesson was a bit more in depth, touching more on subjects the school wouldn't dare to. Then she got into the part about creature ages and the influence they had on the human host.
She also answered some of their concerns.
"If the creature part of you at this age allows for a normal human form, usually that means that you'll have more control over it as a human. Your creature form won't take over as many will tell you otherwise," she explained. "So rest assure that if you do lose control it's all based on your emotions, they can cause you to shift between human and creature. Are there any questions?"
Shino raised his hand, "When it comes down to mating though…" he trailed off, not knowing how to finish his thought.
"Ah, you're worried about whether your partner has to worry about something strange?" she asked.
Shino and Kiba both nodded.
"And age?" Kiba added.
Sasuke clueless blinked at the question. He hadn't thought about how his age and the odds of being a demon and a creature would affect his mating progress. Not that he had delved all that much into what mating meant.
"You don't have to worry about your ages, although you will age differently, your partner and you yourself don't need to worry. Just experience life," Shizune said with a slight smile. Age was always a hard topic for creatures, but one that she wished wouldn't conflict them. They were different, but the aged differently, and at the same time the same as if they were normal.
It just took them a lot less time to reach maturity than it did humans or demons.
Shino and Kiba glanced between them murmuring.
"As for mating progress, that a lot simpler," Tsunade said, "If you are a dog, cat, or any of those you can expect to earn a heat cycle. Of course that will depend on your breed, your needs, and your partner. If you are a male going for a female partner, you might skip the whole heat and depend on her fertility instead. If you are a male going for a male partner, you'll build fertility and a strong heat despite hyour gender…that is based on your needs. Although that rarely happens, homosexual relations are rare for they don't always guarantee the ability to reproduce."
Sasuke had so many questions swirling his little mind, confused on what she was talking about and if it was something he should worry about. Did he need to learn about a possible heat cycle since his chosen partner was male?
Kiba, on the other hand, let out a relieved sigh at hearing what she had to say. "So if I don't have a heat I might not have the urge to you know…push myself on my partner?" he asked with hope.
Tsunade frowned. "Well not necessarily. The urge to breed doesn't change just because you don't acquire a heat cycle. Everyone has a need to breed. The next generation is what evolution is all about. Having children is just what everyone does, but it will be done in the acceptance and reediness of your, I'm guessing female partner?"
Kiba nodded. "Yeah,"
"Human or creature, the urge to mate with your partner will always be there. Just learn to read your body and make sure you communicate that the two of you are sharing similar feelings to couple…" Tsunade crossed her arms, a stern look on her face.
Kiba hesitated before saying, "What if she is a demon?"
"Well now that…" Tsunade was surprised. She only knew a little of what could happen when a creature tried to mate with a demon. If it ever happen it usually ended in death of the creature so there was no telling, but maybe just maybe, these kids could be the start of a future yet not seen, "I'd say that since you are a dog just be careful and prepare to have a litter of children with her. That is if she doesn't castrate and kill all of you…"
"Uh…" Kiba was shocked.
"What about me, an insect?" Shino quickly asked wanting to know what to expect for himself. He wanted a partner badly, but he also wanted to be able to assure them in anything. Being part insect wasn't all that attractive to females, but he was still hoping to find his one and only.
Tsunade smiled, shaking her head at this one.
"You as part insect are a bit more complicated. If your partner is a human, if male you'll not be able to reproduce, if female, you'll be just fine. Your children might have some of your traits but nothing too invasive. But if your partner is a demon be prepared to be the one to lay eggs, no matter the gender of your partner." She said.
"Lay eggs?" Shino gasped.
"Unless you are the kind of insect that gives birth to live young, then yeah. Your body will want to keep a close tie to your insect roots, and your body will change to accommodate that. It means your offspring will have a higher chance of developing antennas, wings, all that but that is all in theory, we have never truly seen a demon mate with an insect creature…" Tsunade said.
Shino sat there with a shocked look on his face, unable to decide what he'd want to do in the future. Not that he had anyone in mind currently, but he had not expected what he heard.
"Shino, why don't you keep in contact with us and we can tell you about any other prospects we can learn," Shizune gently offered.
"Su-sure," Shino breathed.
"Well kids, I will give you my information and my book. Always reach out if you have doubts or questions about who you are or who you wish to have as a future mate." Tsunade said, "As a doctor and scientist, I always try to assure anyone about what they want to do to their bodies in the future. Sadly that also includes telling you about surgeries that are performed in order to make half humans sterile and never reproduce."
"Wait, does that mean that you know of creatures that are born half demon instead of human?" Sasuke cut in, wanting to hear more about cases like himself while not giving away what he truly was.
Tsunade and Shizune gave him sad looks. "As shocked as I am that Kiba plans to mate with a demon, all cases I've learned about are because the demon parent terminated the lives of the offspring and the other parent. Demons can be vain, and most wouldn't choose a creature as a partner by choice, so there isn't anyone alive on record that would tell us what an offspring between the two could look or be like." Tsunade explained. "Humans have a better chance, but in most cases humans forget that they had a child with a demon and the demon raises the child on their own."
Either that, or those like himself just knew how to keep their mouths shut about their existence. Like his mother had been drilling into his and his siblings head from day one, never tell them who you are. Sasuke doubted he was the only one like himself out there.
His mother had known what to do. She had said it would give them a chance at life. She had said many things. Honestly, all of them blurred and blended in Sasuke's head like rules he had to follow to keep himself safe, especially when away from Itachi.
Had his mother lived and his siblings been around, if he'd never met Itachi, just what kind of life would Sasuke lead?
It was an answer he would never have.
One he realized didn't want to actually know. Having Itachi, living his life now, he couldn't picture anything different.
"Alright kids, let's wrap up the lesson and go to lunch. I will be around if any of you have any more questions." Tsunade dismissed them.
Kiba, Shino, and Sasuke followed Iruka with their new books and Tsunade's information on hand.
"That was learning a lot of what we already knew, and stuff I am not sure I wanted to know," Shino breathed, holding his head in his hands. You could say all this new information had blown his mind.
"Yeah it's crazy," Kiba agreed, "I can't believe we could go into heats and all that," he too was still reeling about everything. It just proved that whatever future he wanted with Tamaki might be placed under scrutiny.
Sasuke remained silent, eating the meal he had brought from home. There were a lot of things that worried him about the future, and a lot that he didn't know at the moment that didn't worry him at all. Not because of what had been said, nor because of what he knew. But because he had Itachi and somehow that alone gave comfort to Sasuke not to think too hard about the things he couldn't control.
Somehow, it would all be okay as long as he had Itachi.
That's what he believed anyways.
Once lunch was over, they walked around a few more sections, before they met up with everyone and headed into the souvenir shop. Sasuke followed Shino and Kiba, listening to them talk about either getting something for a parent or for Tamaki. Sasuke looked at everything with disinterest, until a simple black leather necklace with three rings caught his eye.
It reminded Sasuke of Itachi and he decided to get for him.
He wasn't sure how he was going to give it to him, but he didn't think of it as he made the purchase and had it set in a gift box and wrapped neatly.
By the time they got back to the school, the sun was setting. Sasuke followed Kiba and Shino, staying with them for a moment. Shino was the first to leave as his father came to get him. By then, most of the kids had gone, the bus, and only Iruka remained to look over anyone still waiting for a parent.
Tamaki came running as she thought she was late.
Kiba rushed to hug her.
Iruka approached her to speak with her and while they were talking Sasuke told Kiba he was leaving.
"But what about your grandma?" Kiba whispered, glancing at the grownups before giving Sasuke a concerned look.
"She's not coming, but I gotta go, I'll see you tomorrow?" Sasuke said, motioning that he was leaving.
"You sure, I can ask Tamaki to walk you home." Kiba offered.
"No way," Sasuke shrugged off the offer, "I'll be fine. See ya," with that he ran off. Kiba watched him go until he couldn't see him and jumped when Iruka called his attention.
"Where's Sasuke?" he asked.
"He just left with his grandma, in that car," he pointed at a random white car driving off. It had exited a house just now and was luckily driving slowly down the street.
"What, ah, I wanted to talk to her. Alright then," Iruka accepted Kiba's lie and went to wait with the remaining students.
"How was the trip?" Tamaki asked as she and Kiba began to walk off. Kiba smiled, telling her all about it while silently praying that Sasuke made it home safe.
Sasuke was making good time, lightly jogging home when he heard someone call him.
At least, he thought it was him that they were calling, seeing as no one else was around. The side walk was empty with the setting sun, and a fresh breeze guiding him home.
"Hey kid, it is you!" the boy's voice said and Sasuke turned to look into a black gated house. It looked big and nice, but nothing extravagant. He finally found the person calling him and locked eyes with a sulking brown haired kid.
Had he seen him before?
"What," Sasuke snapped, puffing his chest in confidence but keeping his distance. It wasn't always that he was talked to by strangers, and he had to keep wary. Itachi always said talking to strangers wasn't safe.
The boy grinned, "You're that kid from the restaurant." He accused, pointing directly at Sasuke "You ran off that night. You had a search started for you and none of us were able to participate in the challenge. Grandpa will be glad to hear that I found you. I'm so great!" he was triumphant.
"What are you talking about?" Sasuke tilted his head. He looked the boy up and down and it all started coming back to him. A few nights ago when he had followed Itachi and Izumi on their date with the intention of breaking them up, that's where he had met this boy.
What was his name again…?
"There is a search going on for you, look," The boy brought out a weird sketch of a missing poster. Sasuke looked at it and wondered if that was supposed to be him. It… maybe… kind of looked like him, he couldn't tell. "What is your name anyways, and where are your parents?" the boy asked scanning the area around with concern.
"Let me see that," Sasuke said moving to touch the fence.
This caused the kid to shriek.
"Wait no don't. It's going to electrocute you!" the kid looked horrified.
Sasuke laid his hand over the fence, reaching for the paper the boy had dropped in his hysterics.
The fence singed around his fingers but other than tickling, it didn't do anything to him. Instead he focused on reading over so called missing poster. It had a brief description of a child that disappeared at a local restaurant and money to anyone who found him. The phone number asked for anyone with any kind of information to call in and report what they knew.
Well, they weren't going to find him, not with whoever had rendered that image of him.
Sasuke snorted.
The kid was still freaking out.
"Are you insane!? That fence is live. You are asking to be killed!" The boy started to rant. "You're so incredibly dumb, can't you read!" The boy pointed to a white warning sign on the fence. It said that it was live, caution, and the image of a stick figure getting electrocuted.
Sasuke figured live meant that it was charged and able to cause harm, but suddenly the fence snapped and popped on one end…where a large box sat and became charred. Sasuke huffed, moving his hand away to look at it with slight interest.
"No way!" the kid on the other side said, reaching to touch the fence before his face lit up with a large smile, "you killed it!"
"I did?" Sasuke asked, looking from his hand back to the boy. "Hey tell them to quit this search. I'm not missing." Sasuke balled the paper and threw it over at the kid. It hit him square in the face.
The boy sputtered, shooting Sasuke a glare.
"That's not how it works. An adult needs to come forward and claim you once my grandpa and the officers make sure that you are taken into proper custody. So I am going to catch you and turn you in," the child smirked, moving to jump over the fence.
He wasn't all that good at it, missing the range of the fence by a few inches. Instead getting caught by his stomach at the top, and his legs scrambling to find purchase in aiding him over, but before he could a shrill alarm went off.
Sasuke jumped back, startled.
The kid was crying now, struggling to climb over but only ended up cutting into his flesh and ripping his shirt on the barb wire.
"KONOHAMARU!" a voice snapped, and an elderly man was rushing over to the boy that was crying over being caught.
"Grandpa I found that missing kid, come look, he's here right now!" Konohamaru pointed in Sasuke's general direction, his pain momentarily forgotten in favor of gaining his grandfather's recognition.
Sasuke flinched when the older man turned towards him. He covered his face and quickly dashed away into the shadows, running away as fast as possible. There was no way he was getting caught. He hoped the man hadn't gotten a good look at him!
"Was that really the kid that went missing at the restaurant?" the Hokage wondered as he freed his troublemaking grandson.
"Yes that was him, he said he wasn't missing but no worries. I can follow after him grandpa let me-"
"Konohamaru," his grandfather cut in. "its fine. No more playing around." While he was worried that the child might be missing or something, no one else had reported him or stepped up to claim him. Whoever the child was, they might be fine, although he wished he could do some form of welfare check just to be sure.
After sending Konohamaru to his room to get changed and ready for bed, Hiruzen decided to call off the search. He instead looked at his surveillance camera and decided he would check for when the boy had passed by their house.
"Set an alert, when this woman and child pass by tomorrow. I want to speak with them." he said when he found the footage needed. The Image was of an older woman and the described young raven haired boy that had gone missing from the restaurant.
Just to be sure, he will talk to them.
Sasuke ran as fast as he could.
He only stopped once he was safely home.
Chiyo greeted him at the entrance. She asked him about his day and Sasuke easily fell into the semblance of sharing what he had learned and seen. When he asked about Itachi, she petted his head and told him he was in the clear, Itachi wasn't home yet. Sasuke and she talked for a bit, until they heard the gates opening to let in the familiar jeep.
Sasuke's heart jumped with excitement.
Chiyo told him to hurry up so he could get to his boyfriend, causing a blush on the young boy's face. Sasuke made a face at her before transforming into his cat form.
Chiyo took his clothes, bag, and the gift that he had brought back for Itachi. She would set it where he kept his things in her home.
Chiyo made it all seem like coincidence that she ran into Itachi and Kisame. She glared and scoffed at Kisame, but blushed and sweetly spoke with Itachi.
All the while, Sasuke managed to sneak back into Itachi's bedroom, and let out a sigh of relief.
It wasn't until he was there, alone, with his thoughts did the reality of his actions started to settle in his mind.
He'd fucked up, again.
He knew what happened to children with no family history because Itachi had worked a few cases like that.
If what that kid Konohamaru said was right, and there was an investigation out there for him…
If he was found, then he could be reported as some sort of homeless child.
Although, the school could become aware and release that he was Chiyo's grandchild, but then that would probably mean having to show that he was truly living with her. They might be investigated to prove that her claim on him was real.
There was a possibility that they would be exposed.
What if they labeled her and Itachi as kidnappers?
Sasuke could be taken away and placed into the foster system with a family that would provide and send him to school instead. That also meant that he would be watched closely and never be allowed to get near Itachi or Chiyo for that matter, ever again…
He could end up causing so much trouble for them if he was ever found out like that…the very thought of leaving Itachi hurt.
He didn't want to leave Itachi, he was his family now, but…that meant not being afraid, right?
Itachi had said it, he was his important someone.
There was no way that Itachi would hurt him, not when he held him so gently and even dropped sweet words into his kitty ears. He was just a cat, someone anyone else would brush aside and not care about. A useless cat that would have been overlooked and left to die by whoever had found him in the state that he had been in…
But not Itachi.
No, Itachi had picked him up, washed his wounds, and provided warmth, a home…a place to belong.
Honestly, at first maybe it was true. The thing was that this was no longer an issue with Sasuke, so much as other concerns were.
Sasuke was scared, he knew, as he stared at himself and sniffled his unshed tears.
He knew there was a potential for Itachi to be mad at him for hiding this secret, but he was sure Itachi wouldn't kill him. At worse he'd tell him to leave, or he himself would send him off to another home. Itachi had the power to place him in the system.
"But I don't want that," Sasuke murmured as finally his tears fell down his cheeks, and his chest burned with so much sadness. He wanted to be a grown up already. He wanted to be able to make his own decisions, be able to stand next to Itachi as an equal…
When his emotions were so high strung like this it felt like he couldn't even breathe. He was that scared, but damn it, it was probably time… he had to tell Itachi but he was scared.
He was scared of no longer meaning anything to Itachi.
Of no longer being needed by Itachi…
Of being rejected.
Sasuke could hear the low yowls, pained, as they tumbled from his little throat. Just at the sheer thought that he would be rejected by Itachi. It felt like a thousand knives piercing through his very soul, painfully destroying him.
It was just a thought that had him this scared.
What would the reality do to him?
The other side of that same coin could turn out to be worth taking the risk of telling Itachi.
Sasuke could live a normal life, and get to do many more things. He wouldn't have to hide who he was. He could express himself to Itachi, have conversations with him…he could clearly demand all his love and affections…
Sasuke wasn't sure how long he sat in front of the mirror contemplating whether to tell Itachi or not when there was a warm hand running over his back. He blinked, looking up in confusion, and it was almost as if he was seeing for the first time, the wonderful sight of Itachi smiling down at him with warmth.
His lean but muscled frame looking at him, that silky raven hair falling over Itachi's chiseled cheeks, soft smile, gentle eyes, and the radiating power that sent a shock down his spine.
Sasuke found himself stretching to meet Itachi's touch, purring before he even registered what he was being pulled against his hot chest, the delicious smell of Itachi surrounding and clouding his every sense, calming every high strung emotion choking him.
He was home.
When Itachi walked into his apartment, he was confused at not being greeted by his kitten.
Kisame yawned, claiming he was tired but needed to get ready for his date with Suigetsu in an hour. He was rushing to prepare, not happy that Chiyo had stopped them to talk, or in Kisame's point of view, waste their time.
Itachi ignored his friend and made his way to his bedroom, setting his bag down as he finally found his precious goo. The kitten was staring at himself in the mirror and Itachi had to wonder what he was looking at so hard.
Reaching down to run his fingers over Kitty's fur had the little thing perking up and melting into his touch. It caused all tension to leave Itachi's body, relief and warmth washing over him at having his kitty purring in his arms.
"Are you hungry my lovely?" Itachi asked, using another endearing term to call his kitten. He wasn't sure what caused it, but Itachi found himself wanting to call Kitty all the loving things in the world. Odd, how this little fur ball could elicit such emotions from him.
He was happiness, and that was all Itachi needed to know.
When the kitten meowed, Itachi chuckled.
"I'm spoiling you, you know that don't you?" Itachi said, turning the kitten around as he picked him up from under his arms so he could look at him. "So chunky my baby," Itachi smiled as he wiggled the kitten back and forth, "You're really getting so big, and so handsome," Itachi tilted his head, simply gazing at the kitten that didn't fight him but instead seemed to watch him in return. Itachi's smile dropped as he got a serious look on his face. "You're my everything you know that, don't ever leave me."
The demon's eyes flashed so possessively the kitten simply melted in uncontrolled purrs, ruby eyes smiling at him. Itachi was pleased with the response as he got to his feet.
"Let's go eat," he said, rubbing his nose against the kittens before he set him down.
Sasuke wobbled around in a sudden daze before he dashed off after Itachi, skidding to a halt against his leg when he was unable to stop easily from his sprint.
"How does steak sound?" Itachi asked.
Kitty let out a loud meow of approval and before long he was jumping from counter to table, following Itachi around as he cooked. The more he watched, the more Kitty retained and learned.
Someday maybe, when he told Itachi, he would be able to cook him a meal as well.
That thought quickly died when he was finally allowed to take a bite of the steak and he found himself thinking that it was sin for any food to taste that divine.
Itachi was truly amazing.
Itachi was dozing off on the couch with his kitten asleep on his lap.
They were in the middle of watching a gory movie about a strange man, murder, and cannibalism when there was a knock at the door.
Itachi hesitated, not wanting to get up and disturb the snoozing cat on his lap. When the knock persisted, Itachi committed a crime by gently moving his floof to the side and walked over to open the door.
Too bad Kisame wasn't around, but the man was probably not going to be home until a few days from now. The two of them had no work to think about at the moment, so he was sure Kisame would take advantage of that.
Itachi's irritation turned to surprise when he saw Izumi standing on the other side of his door. He had not been expecting to see her. In fact, he had been dodging her calls and ignoring her texts because he had been actively avoiding her.
"Hey Izumi, why are you here?" Itachi was momentarily confused. He was sure that he had never given her his address. She never seemed interested in it anyways. The only way that he knew she could have it was thanks to his mother.
Well, Izumi was here now, and there was nothing that he could do about that.
He didn't want to talk to her or face her right now. Deep inside he knew he owed her an apology for the way he had acted, but it didn't change the fact that he also didn't want to face her.
"Hey Itachi, I'm sorry to just drop in on you like this but I wanted to check on you and see if you were doing alright…you kind of just," She shivered, letting her words trail off. She shyly looked away, unable to look him in the face.
Itachi glanced down at her choice of clothing.
She was dressed in a short skirt, and was wearing a thin sweater over a shirt that left her midriff exposed. Even the heels on her feet looked more of a bother than what they were supposed to be, stylish.
Itachi swallowed his need to complain about her lack of clothing, "You look beautiful tonight." He offered a weary smile. He mainly did it because he knew that it's what she wanted to hear.
He knew that it was what she was hoping for.
He was tired of this so he was just going to give it to her.
Her suddenly beaming face told him he was right. "Thank you Itachi," She tugged at her skirt and squirmed in place.
"Do you want to come in and spend some time with me?" Itachi asked when she didn't say anything else.
He hoped that now that she had heard him compliment her, that she would try to listen to him and wear warmer clothing.
"Yeah, I would like that!" He watched as her cheeks colored themselves a nice cherry red as she grinned and nodded at him.
Itachi stepped aside, allowing her entrance.
Izumi visibly relaxed at the warmth that greeted her. She felt giddy as she looked around the nice apartment but paused when she noted the insane man cutting into a person's flesh, blood splattering all over the place. She looked away, trying hard not to look at the television again.
What she couldn't escape was the horrified screams of the killer's victims. The sound of slashing and hacking into flesh.
"What are you watching!" left Izumi's mouth before she could stop herself.
"It's a movie," Itachi said like he was uninterested. "Come take a seat and watch it with me," he said as he picked Kitty up. He sat down, placing the still sleeping kitten on his lap.
"Bu-but…" Izumi closed her mouth and moved to sit next to him.
"You okay?" he asked.
"Fine," That's what she said, but she kept squirming, uncomfortable over each scene. Itachi noted the way she kept swallowing her tongue over how she wasn't enjoying herself.
Itachi's mind caught up with the situation at hand and changed the channel to one of the romance dramas, running a hand over his hair as he leaned back. "Sorry, I forgot you were uncomfortable with horror and gore," Itachi said.
Izumi turned to look at him with a grateful look on her face when her eyes went down to his lap where he was running his fingers over the still purring kitten that hadn't woken up.
"Oh that's a cute cat." She gushed.
"Yeah," Itachi said, turning to look at her. She looked very intrigued with his kitten now.
"What is it, a girl?" she asked with a slight smile, "Can I pet her?"
"It's a boy," Itachi said, and nodded his head. "Sure, just don't wake him. He gets agitated around new people and it takes a while to get him to warm up."
"Aw," Izumi murmured but as her fingers moved over the soft fur the kitten suddenly jumped, hissing and turning glaring red eyes towards her. She jumped, startled as he slapped her hand away harshly.
Itachi jolted as well, surprised by the sudden reaction.
He was sure the kitten had been asleep.
"Is…is he okay?" Izumi asked, worriedly holding her scratched hand to her chest.
"I think so," Itachi said, running his hands over the kitten to relax him. Kitty settled, but when Izumi tried to touch him again, he would growl and hiss, never once dropping his guard around her.
She finally gave up, looking sad.
"Why doesn't he like me?" she wondered.
"He was like that with me at first too, I think he just needs to get used to you," Itachi tried to reason. Although he was not sure what the case was. He knew it took time for Kitty to accept others, and it seemed that it wasn't going to change any time soon. Not that he could blame Kitty after everything he had been through.
For a moment they silently sat watching the romance movie.
Izumi eventually crumbled as she said, "Hey, Itachi, what are we?"
Itachi didn't look away from the television, the kitten on his lap was tense and growling, seeming unhappy that she was there. "I…I don't know." He finally admitted. Itachi chanced a glance at her, "Izumi," Itachi said, determined to tell her what he was thinking.
That was until he saw her crying face.
All words escaped him and he shifted to face her, concerned.
"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked.
"Am I not good enough?" she asked.
"That's not…" Itachi sighed, "I've wanted to tell you that I have been thinking about… what I want to get out of a relationship…" Itachi hesitated before he asked, "How do you know that I am the one for you?"
Izumi blinked, taken aback by his words. "I…I" she blushed, looking a bit away as she gave a smile. "When I first noticed you I couldn't help but think wow, he's so gentle, and I just knew it had to be you," she softly said.
"You know that I kill for a living…you think that's gentle?" Itachi asked, perplexed by her response.
"I know what you are capable of, your mom and dad although sad that you didn't take over the business are still very proud of you," Izumi nodded her head. "They still talk very highly of you and all you've accomplished…I know…"
"I'm their only son, of course they think highly of me." Itachi still had a slight resentment towards his father because he never seemed to care about Itachi's feelings before he spoke up for himself. Always trying to dictate what he should do or should be doing.
He was suffocating.
His mother, although gentle and understanding could be very stubborn and unyielding when it came to what she wanted from him. Even now, pushing him to Izumi was causing more stress to him than he could ever admit.
Itachi had no doubts that this relationship was more for his mom than him. In the end he felt like she didn't care if he was happy, so long as Itachi had a partner to take care of him and produced kids.
Itachi knew she worried over how reckless he could be, she was hoping Izumi would ground him. But Itachi knew how to ground himself, knew to be calm and thought everything through to the last detail.
His parents never listened.
So he moved away from them to do his own thing.
The distance made things better.
Yet Itachi sat here, wondering why he was still entertained his mother's ideas…
Maybe it was because deep inside he wished he could find his own true mate. Maybe it was just that there was something wrong with him and his mother was right…
"Itachi, I want us to be more," Izumi suddenly said. "I want us to be official. For you to be my boyfriend," she looked up at him with so much hope, so much want…
"No," Itachi flinched, he had spoken before he even thought about her words. He looked at her face and then away, "I…I'm not ready," he added because he couldn't stand the hurt that flashed in her eyes.
Her devastated face didn't untwist as tears fell. "w-when will you be ready?" she asked.
"I don't know," Itachi honestly said. The Kitten in his lap was wide eyed and frozen, shocked at what was being discussed in front of him. His little heart hammering hard and pleading that Itachi down right reject her.
Izumi sighed, inching closer to him.
Clinging to the thought that Itachi had not fully rejected her.
There was still a chance.
She just had to find a way to give him that push. She moved so close to him that Itachi shifted a bit to move away, dumping his kitten to the floor in the process.
The kitten barely caught himself, turning around to see as Izumi lowered her eyes to Itachi's lips, and pleadingly said, "Can I have a kiss, please."
No
Sasuke's bared his fangs in anger when Itachi leaned into her with a slight nod. "Yeah…" Itachi figured this was his chance to see. This might prove what he needed to know deep inside, the truth of his relationship with Izumi.
Sasuke's little heart thumped thickly, and squeezed painfully.
No
She closed her eyes, her shinny lips puckered as she waited for Itachi to close the gap between them.
Itachi closed his eyes, tilting his head just slightly as he met his lips to her.
It was a brief brush, a slight press.
And nothing happened.
Itachi wasn't sure what he had been expecting.
Fireworks, a spark, or maybe something else other than the heavy emptiness in his chest the second their lips connected. He squeezed his eyes tighter, trying to feel something as their lips move against each other, and then he just had to pull away. Breaking the kiss before Izumi had the chance to try and deepen it.
Itachi let out a breath, frustrated at himself.
It wasn't that he needed to catch his breath. It wasn't that he was dazed nor dizzy from the experience. It was just that it felt like a big nothing. For all the hype that his friends had made about the act, how they made kissing sound like such a great and unforgettable thing—honestly he was kind of disappointed.
Izumi was having a whole other experience.
She was blushing, a smile on her face as her fingers carefully touched her lips in wonder. She looked so happy with what they shared. She was giddy, squirming where she sat, shooting him sweet looks. In her head she had accomplished something. She was getting what she always wanted and dreamt off, not caring for what Itachi was currently thinking about.
Itachi could only look at her blankly, wondering if he had done it right…
From her expressions, he had to have done something right. Yet the nagging feeling that it all had been wrong lingered in the back of his mind.
It had been wrong, he never should have…
Fuck.
Itachi glanced down, movement catching his eye.
The kitten growling and moving to attack Izumi had Itachi reaching for him, bringing him to his chest when the little creature clawed and bit into his flesh. Not that Itachi registered any of the pain, letting the kitten get away with what it wanted, even if it meant shredding his hand.
Itachi finally scooted away from her, wanting to ask her what she felt when they kissed, but also not really wanting to know. Itachi discreetly whipped his mouth off with his free hand, disgusted at himself.
Kitty continued to angrily growl, biting deeper.
Izumi looked from Itachi to Kitty. She thought there was something wrong with the kitten. Itachi assured her it was all okay.
She took his words for what they were and spent a few more minutes there, talking about what they should do for their next date. Complaining about how he had been ignoring her texts and cals. All he wanted was for her to shut up and go away.
It wasn't her fault.
But he needed time to think over his feelings.
Once she was gone, and the silence of the apartment settled over him, Itachi finally muttered what he had been thinking all along.
"Is that really how it's supposed to be…"
A few days following the kiss, Izumi was in her house attempting to call Itachi. The man wasn't answering her calls and it was starting to get on her nerves. Itachi had been so absent lately and she wasn't sure how to approach him about it anymore.
She wondered if he was that busy with work or if something else had come up.
She wanted to go out on a date.
She wanted to attempt another kiss.
She wanted it so bad that she felt her heart soar the moment that her call was finally answered.
"Hey Itachi, how have you been?" she asked, her tone cheerful. She was on her way to her bedroom, happy and wanting to have privacy.
"Hey Izumi," Itachi greeted, for a moment remaining silent, before he said, "I think I want to break up,"
Izumi halted her steps, her smile dropped. "W-what?" she asked, her tone cracking. Surely she had heard wrong.
"Let's break up."