ZERO / BLEACH / TWIST / REVERSE (here) / DYE / RED

We look before and after, /And pine for what is not; /Our sincerest laughter /With some pain is fraught; /Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought. -Percy Bysshe Shelley

Shisui stared unseeingly out the window once Sakura finished speaking. They could hear muffled conversation from next door as the neighbors got ready for the day. Shisui often complained about their dog and how it yapped at the worst times. Outside, the skyline shimmered in the soft layer of magic that covered the city. He closed his eyes. Sighed.

"I'm no expert, but that's no ordinary nightmare," he decided.

Itachi gripped the edge of the counter to lower himself to the floor. The soles of his boots squeaked pitifully against the scuffed linoleum. He raked his hand through his hair. Sakura stared at him. And then she sat down right next to him. She gave his knee a couple pats, which he didn't even acknowledge.

The silence stretched on for a few minutes. The coffee was done, but no one moved toward the carafe or the three mugs that sat waiting on the counter.

"For your heart?" Itachi finally broke the silence.

"To eat it. He said he was hungry," Sakura reiterated.

Shisui frowned. "That's not how demons usually work. Years off a lifespan, yeah. A talent or some blood, maybe. But a heart?" He finally looked at her.

"Not anymore, but there were cases a long time ago," Itachi corrected him. And then he lifted his hand toward Sakura's shoulder. He paused. Only when Sakura nodded did he pull her hair off her neck and peel her sweater away from her skin.

"What kind of deals usually involved hearts, Itachi?" Shisui asked. He pushed off the counter, moving around the kitchen to get a look at the mark too.

"A heart is the center of any person. It's worth a lot. So it would be a big favor. I can't think of anything specific off the top of my head. I'll need to check the archives."

"Does it hurt?" Shisui was talking to her now.

Sakura shook her head. She gave Itachi's hand a nudge. It fell away without protest so she could fix her sweater and move her hair back to hide it all.

"It itches a little. Kind of like when a scab's about to fall off."

"I can go reference the records at the precinct to see if someone else has seen this before. Actually, I can go do that now," Itachi muttered. He began pushing off the floor, but Sakura's hand shot out to grab his sleeve. His eyes widened.

"You're not going to find anything on butterflies. All you figure out is that insects are usually tied to eating part of a lifespan. But there's no point in that if we know he's already going after my heart."

Itachi's eyebrows rose. And then knitted together.

Shisui's back hit the refrigerator as he slumped against it. Another sigh left him. "You know-" They both looked up at him. "Saves a lot of time that you've been doing this much digging on your own."

Sakura frowned. "Technically Itachi did all the digging… last time."

Shisui dug in his pocket. Then patted at his shirt. Cursed a little. Instead he shuffled across the kitchen to pour himself a cup of coffee. "So… are you thinking this is a time loop? Or more of a divination situation?"

She remembered waking up in the morning. So certain that the sheets would be covered in blood and that parts of her would be gone. The sensation of fangs gouging and tearing. The way her nerves screamed as her muscle and bone tore. Just thinking about it too hard made her feel sick again. She shuddered. Wrapped her arms around herself.

"It hurt. Dreams and divination aren't supposed to hurt," she managed to say.

And then a thought occurred to her. Shisui was right. He wasn't an expert in these matters. It was true that all of them were gifted with dream magic. But if Madara wasn't someone they could talk to, there was someone who might know just as much. If not more.

"Can you cover my appointments for me today?" she asked.

"What're you thinking?" Shisui asked in return. He took a slurp of his coffee, eyes fixed on her.

"I want to go to the Senju Academy."

Shisui and Itachi exchanged a look. "Hashirama hid the fact that you were a dream caster in the first place," Shisui pointed out.

"And isn't that strange? Why would he do that? It's worth asking, don't you think?"

Itachi's expression darkened. He and Shisui exchanged a look. Shisui gestured with his chin toward Sakura. Itachi's mouth twisted one side.

"If you insist that we're keeping Sasuke out of this-" he began.

"We are. I've watched him get his heart ripped out twice," Sakura insisted. Both her cousins flinched at that. "I mean, both of you die too. But I don't even know how that happens. At least with Sasuke, if he's not with me, it'll be safer."

Itachi considered this. "Fine. Then one of us needs to go with you. The other should go to the store with an excuse."

They all fell silent as they wracked their brains for a plausible explanation.

Shisui rubbed his chin. "You forgot that you had to do something for your thesis?" he suggested.

"No one will believe that," Sakura immediately shot him down. The corner of Itachi's mouth pulled up.

"That's true. Sakura has her assignments done before the professor even assigns them," he teased. Sakura gave him a half-hearted push with her elbow. But she cracked a smile too.

"Well… why not just… tell the truth? I had a super weird nightmare. It bugged me so much that I want to go look up something about it. One of you's coming with me because he's worried?" she suggested, looking from Itachi to Shisui.

Shisui shrugged. "Better than anything I could come up with," he agreed. He offered his hand to her, pulling her to her feet. And then Itachi too.

Sakura knew exactly when Shisui arrived at the shop and conveyed her excuse. Her phone buzzed from inside her pocket.

Sasuke asked if she was okay.

She apologized for not being there for her appointments.

He told her not to worry about it. (Just wanted to make sure you're not sick.)

And it struck her again. How much he cared.

"I'm just some orphan kid. I'm not even related to you guys. You shouldn't… this…"

The way he spat back: "Don't fucking say that. I…. you… I'll never fucking forgive you if you say that shit again." As if insulted by the very idea that they weren't family.

How he had fallen, spilling his blood for her without hesitation.

She then glanced over at Itachi, who was flipping through pages of a book that she suspected might be made out of skin. She didn't have the heart to tell him so. Her chest constricted as she watched him scrutinize the words on the page.

When he finally noticed her staring, Itachi looked up.

"Did you want to trade?" he asked, gesturing toward her book. Sakura blinked a few times. Looked down at her own reading. Then nodded. She slid it across the table toward him, accepting the one that he gave her in return.

They pored through the books in the library of the Senju Academy together. Thankfully, classes were in session, so there were no students or teachers there to disturb them. The sections on dreams and divination proved unhelpful. The demonology section of the library wasn't much better either.

In the end, they decided to pay a visit to the headmaster.

His secretary informed them that the headmaster was away for a meeting.

Itachi glared at the plaque on his door.

"Uncle was right. He is useless," he grumbled.

Sakura sighed. Hashirama wouldn't pay her a visit until some time in December. She didn't particularly feel like waiting around until then. She leaned against the wall, looking down at her boots. There was a scuff around one of the laces. She summoned a bit of magic to her fingertips to swipe the mark away.

"Big improvement."

Itachi and Sakura both looked up at the voice.

Professor Tobirama dropped a parcel off with the secretary. He rubbed his gloved hands together as he strode toward them.

"Is everything alright? The headmaster won't really be in this week," Tobirama told them.

Sakura almost said she was fine on reflex. But when she cast a glance at Itachi, he raised his eyebrows, like he was thinking the same thing she was.

"Actually… can we talk to you?" Sakura requested.

Tobirama looked down at his watch. Tilted his head to one side. Then he nodded.

"We can go to my office. Follow me," he said, already turning on his heel.

She felt Itachi's palm grasp hers. It was warm, and she knew that it was one half of a linking spell. The heat flowed into her, traveling up her arm, through her shoulder, into her heart. She gave Itachi's hand a light squeeze to finish the link before she pulled away. Tobirama was too sharp not to have noticed a spell like that, but he didn't comment. Just paused to let them catch up before he continued down the hall.

Tobirama's office was located several floors above his brother's. The heavy wood door swung shut behind them. Inside, little motes of green and white swirled around, pulsating faintly. They made tinkling sounds as Sakura brushed past them.

Tobirama gestured to the two chairs facing his desk as he dropped his coat. A spell swept it away, presumably into some closet hidden somewhere. He peeled his gloves off as he sank into his leather chair. Sakura and Itachi stared around the office as they sat.

"So what can I help you with? I'm surprised you're looking for answers here and not with Madara," Tobirama remarked. There was some sarcasm there, but Sakura didn't even pretend to care.

"Can you tell us about demons?" Sakura asked instead.

Tobirama was a lot like Hashirama. They were both magical geniuses- brilliant in their own ways. They were also both a lot older than they appeared. She had asked Madara once if he was older than the brothers were. And it was one of the few times that he had looked genuinely upset by one of her questions.

"Don't compare me to those children, kid. They were still in diapers when I was… well… doing things," Madara had snorted.

Sakura suddenly had a glimpse of that age when Tobirama's eyes narrowed. He leaned back in his seat, his hands folding on top of his desk as he scrutinized them.

"You're going to have to be more specific," Tobirama responded.

Sakura pulled her thoughts together and sent them through the link.

How much can we tell him?

She could feel the soft hum, almost like static, as Itachi tried to come up with a response. There was a moment.

Maybe leave out names? Ask about the heart thing.

Tobirama's eyes flickered back and forth between them. There was no way that he could hear the contents of their silent conversation. But there was no doubt that he could feel the way their thoughts flowed. Like little jolts of magic pinging back and forth along the same nerve.

"That's not an easy spell. You're both excellent at it," Tobirama observed. And then his gaze softened a little as his eyes fell on Sakura.

"I'm glad you managed to pull that spark free. Looks like sending you with Madara was the right choice."

Sakura forced a smile onto her face, nodding a little.

"Um. So, to answer your question, I specifically want to know about demon contracts. How common is it for contracts to demand a… significant payment?" Sakura redirected the conversation back to more urgent matters.

Tobirama's eyes sharpened. "Payment like a blood sacrifice?"

"Yes. Or a heart."

Tobirama's nose wrinkled. "Oh. Yes. I'm glad it's fallen out of practice. That was…" He seemed to search within himself, the way old people did when they were reaching for the more distant memories. "When I was a boy, human sacrifice was practiced for large spells. It wasn't the norm. But it was done enough that you would hear stories. Or see it yourself. It's not like you can ignore the effects of such powerful magic."

"That's horrible," Itachi muttered.

"Why did people stop then? If it's so powerful?" Sakura pressed.

Tobirama's expression brightened a little. "You've always been a good student. Asking the good questions." He examined the both of them for a moment. And then he explained. "Human sacrifice was actually quite rare. Mostly, casters would offer parts of themselves. Fingers, eyes, you know, the sorts of things you can still live without. But then people started to look less like people and more like… unfinished puzzles. Necromancers especially."

"As a collective, we started to see the danger in such sacrifice. So we stopped practicing it. Some cities outright banned teaching it at all. Although we here believe all students have a right to at least know of the danger. Not much sense in banning something without explanation."

"We still have contracts, though. Papa has a host of water spirits who live in our pipes to help out with chores," Sakura thought out loud.

Tobirama nodded at that. "Small deals. Little favors. All spirits aim to help."

Sakura remembered that. It was something he had said often during her early days at the academy. And when he gave her an expectant look, she finished his thought. "All spirits aim to help. It's our intent that gives them fangs."

Tobirama gave her a look of approval.

Itachi's voice tickled at their link.

Ask him about Naruto.

Sakura's gaze flickered over to him. And then back to Tobirama. Who sat waiting with one hand under his chin now, a faint smile on his lips, as if he were enjoying this conversation.

"What can you tell us about spirits who take a corporeal shape?" she inquired.

Tobirama's smile disappeared.

"The shape of a person?"

She didn't answer. But that seemed to be the response Tobirama needed. He stared into her eyes as he spoke:

"It would have to be one hell of a contract for a spirit to want to invest all that time and energy into maintaining a human body. But yes, it's possible. And very dangerous if true."

Sakura felt Itachi grip her arm. He was tense. Maybe even more than she was.

Just as she began to worry that Tobirama was about to say something else, his expression relaxed.

"But of course we're discussing theory. So there's nothing to fear." His gaze was heavy as it lingered first on her, then Itachi.

"Yes, of course," Itachi was the one to respond.

Sakura functioned on autopilot as she thanked him for his time. Gripping Itachi's arm, she pulled him toward the door. She could feel Tobirama's eyes on the back of her neck. She was certain that he would pass on this conversation to the headmaster. Not that it mattered. As long as it never reached Madara.

"So… he thinks you're planning to make a really bad contract with a spirit," Itachi murmured out loud once they were outside the academy. It was cold outside. Sakura tucked her hands into her pockets.

"Yeah, definitely," she agreed.

"Is that going to be a problem?" Itachi worried.

"…I might not be alive long enough for that to matter."

Itachi clicked his tongue. "Don't say things like that."

"It's true, though."

There was a long sigh. Then Itachi patted the top of her head. "Still. Don't say that," he insisted, sounding tired.

Against her better judgment, Sakura still went on her date that night. After arriving late the shop and seeing to her remaining appointments, Sakura helped her cousins lock up. And then she was off to meet with Gaara at the tiny Turkish restaurant she had no problem finding.

They sat at one of the counters by the window, a little squished as they bit into spicy lamb and crispy falafel. It was just as good as she remembered.

"What are you doing now that we're out of school?" she asked. She took a slurp of soda through her straw as she looked over at him. She laughed when she saw him struggling to swallow his food to answer. She handed him a napkin.

"Eat. It's okay."

Gaara blushed again as he wiped his mouth. The thin paper stuck to the oil on his fingers.

"I'm… working at city hall. For public works," he finally managed to say.

Sakura tilted her head to one side. "I'm not really sure what public works is in charge of," she lied.

Something lit up in his eyes. He sat up a little straighter as he began explaining. "There are divisions within public works. But basically it's in charge of taking care of public buildings and facilities in the city. I work for the division that oversees the parks. I go out to visit them and check that they're safe. Sometimes I survey people to ask what they think we can do to improve things."

Sakura smiled a little. She leaned on her hand as she listened to him. And when he had finished, he glanced over at her. Suddenly small and quiet again.

"You really like your work, huh?" she commented.

He flushed bright red, all the way to his ears. But he nodded. It was almost as endearing as the first time.

"That sounds cool. What are you working on lately?" Sakura asked.

They stayed until the manager of the restaurant apologized and said it was time to close. As they stood on the sidewalk, Sakura puffed out a breath. It was getting cold at night. Her hands in her pockets, she cast a sidelong glance at Gaara. He was looking down at his phone.

"I'll call you a cab," he offered.

She thought for a moment. About confronting him right here and now. But she had to remind herself that it wouldn't go the way she wanted. He was shy. Grabbing him by the shoulders and demanding the truth would only make things more difficult in the end.

So she nodded.

When he asked if he could see her again, she agreed. All the while fighting the urge to blurt out that she had seen him die at least twice now. Or was it three times? It was getting difficult to keep track of it all.

Madara was sitting at the kitchen table when she got home. She tossed her coat in the air. One of Madara's spells caught it and draped it over a hanger. Just like the one that gathered her discarded shoes and slipped them into an empty spot on the shelf. She climbed the steps, rubbing her hands through her hair.

"Hi, Papa," she greeted him as she walked into the kitchen. He raised his eyebrows and nodded before he returned his attention to his book. Sakura scrubbed her hands clean in the sink. The smell of the fruity soap filled the room. She rubbed her hands on a kitchen towel before she took a seat next to Madara at the round table.

"How'd it go?" questioned Madara. He slipped a bookmark between the pages before he shut the cover.

"Pretty good. He's nice," Sakura said right away.

Madara pulled his glasses down, hooking them into the front of his shirt. "That sounds promising."

They chatted for a little while before Sakura announced that she was going to bed. Madara just nodded, already turning his attention back to his books. It was obvious that he had stayed up waiting for her. And it was cute that he pretended otherwise.

Sakura hesitated in the doorway. Then she stepped back inside to put her arms around his shoulders and give him a small squeeze. He twisted around to look at her.

"Are you alright?" he asked her.

And she knew it wasn't just about the date. It was about everything. The nightmare. The crying. It had most certainly been a strange day. It would've been stranger for Madara not to worry.

Sakura squeezed him for a second longer before she released him. Out of the corner of her eye, she glimpsed something. When she released Madara and turned around, there was nothing. It had been a flicker of something black. Like… a tail?

"Yeah, I'm fine," she finally answered, not looking at him.

"Good night, Papa," she then added, heading up to her room.

"…Night," he replied.

Sakura dreamt weirdly that night. She closed her eyes. Didn't see the usual entrance to the dream world or the long hallway filled with doors. Didn't even feel herself fall asleep. Because what normally happened was that she would lay in bed, feel her awareness begin to fade away before the dream swept over her like a wave of warm water.

She closed her eyes. And when she opened them, bubbles were streaming out of her mouth. Her hair wavered all around her face. She closed her eyes. Opened them again. Suddenly the water was gone. Now she was floating in darkness, the distant light of stars winking back at her. She blinked again, froze when she felt her shoulder knock against something solid.

"Hello?" A voice called out from somewhere to her left.

She looked around. This was an endless space filled with shelves and boxes. A shadow fell across the floor near her. Then Sasuke's head popped up beside one of the shelves.

They stared at one another.

"Is this your dream or mine?" Sasuke wondered.

Sakura took another look around. She touched one of the vials on the shelves. Wondered at the way dust came off on her fingers. At the way the edges of the label peeled and curled inward. That attention to detail could only have come from Sasuke's head.

"Yours," she decided.

That seemed to satisfy Sasuke. He stepped out from behind the shelf.

"You okay? You seemed off today. Shisui said you had a pretty bad nightmare. Thought you didn't get those anymore." As he spoke, Sasuke gathered bottles and bits off the shelves.

Sakura really considered telling him. She was certain that he would be just as supportive this time around. He had taken the hit for her more than once. Never a word of accusation or complaint. Protecting her like it was as natural as breathing air. Not even blaming her when he lost his brother, who she knew he loved more than anyone else.

But she had made a decision. And it was important to see things through.

Instead, she asked something else that had been on her mind for a while now.

"Sasuke?"

"Hm."

"…Why are you so nice to me?"

Sasuke stared at her again. But this time, it was in a way that distinctly reminded her of Madara. Especially when she asked him if he'd seen something that she was currently holding in her hand.

He wrinkled his nose at her. "Did you hit your head?"

"I'm serious."

Sasuke turned red. "What kind of question is that? Because we- I… Ugh!"

Sakura's eyebrows rose as Sasuke slammed his things down on an open spot on a shelf. He rubbed his hands over his face.

"I can't believe you're making me say this! Because you're family and I love you or whatever. Gross!" Sasuke barked at her. He shuddered. Glaring, he swiped his things off the shelf and turned away from her, grumbling, "I don't even say that to my parents. Stupid Sakura." He rattled around another shelf, pretending to look for something there.

After a while, he peeked over his shoulder at her.

"You're not crying, are you?" he asked, pretending not to worry.

"Nah. Thanks, I guess."

Sasuke ducked his head, the back of his neck still tinged pink. "Yeah. Just… don't tell anyone I said that. Especially Shisui."

She laughed. "Promise."