Path of The Stars

Yellow eyes, following me. I could hear the cloak sliding on the ground, rustling the air. Panting, I was panting. Running. My nightgown snagged on a rosebush, and I stopped to tug it free. As I did, I could see him coming. Closer, closer. He was whispering something, but I couldn't hear it clearly enough through the panic pounding in my head.

Nightgown freed, I turned to run–only to stop short and see my sisters standing there, arms out. “You can't get past us! You won't get to my sister!” they said in unison.

To my surprise, I could see myself behind them, cowering, afraid, crying, and I was moving. Looking down, I was wearing a black cloak. “You can't save her,” I said, but it wasn't me. The voice wasn't mine. I wasn't talking. “I will get her. I will get all three of you.” I raised my arm–but it wasn't my arm. There was a sword in my hand.

My viewpoint switched. I was suddenly behind them, staring at the yellow-eyed man raising his sword. The sword whipped out before I could say anything, and blood flew. My sisters collapsed, Shi first, Tsu second. I screamed, and screamed, as he came closer.

My eyes snapped onto black eyes. I screamed again, pushing at the person above me. “Get away, get away!” I heard a grunt, a thump, and I turned, searching. There was a window in the unfamiliar room. I leapt to my feet, running toward it. I'd reached it when an arm closed around my waist. Another closed over my chest, pinning my arms down.

“Seishiryu, stop! You're going to get yourself hurt!”

“Let go! Let go of me!”

“No! You're going to get hurt! You don't know the area around here. You can't just go running off in a blind panic! Stop, calm down!” He clasped me to his chest, holding tight. “Stop struggling! Stop it!”

“Let go!”

“No!”

My legs shook, collapsing, and he was holding all my weight even as I tried to get my legs straightened. I was crying. All I could see was the blood, and the yellow eyes. Everywhere I looked, there he was. The man with the yellow eyes. I collapsed, and he lowered us to the floor, turning me around to clasp me to his chest. I grabbed onto his shoulders tightly, then wound my arms around his neck, clinging to him.

He held me, cupping the back of my head, silent. The free arm wrapped around my waist, and he pulled me closer. He said something softly, but I couldn't make his words out.

Clinging to him still, all I could see was the dream. The man. Yellow eyes, staring at me from the darkness of a hood. Blood, everywhere. And I started to hate him. As I sat there, crying, I began to learn the meaning of that word. A word I thought I'd never have reason to say.

I loved my family. Sometimes I thought I hated my sister, or even Sasuke, but I never really did. Not if this was anything to go by. This burning hatred that I felt now. It was a darkness in my heart that I'd never known before. Now I knew it. I knew it for the man with yellow eyes, and I knew it for my own flesh and blood. My own sister.

No, I amended. Not my sister. My sisters are Tsudoshi, and Shikotai. Sisters don't try to kill you. Sisters love you and want the best for you. They don't bring criminals to your home and destroy everything you've ever known. They don't plot the deaths of their families so they can be pitied. Kartwer Hoshikuzu, you are no sister of mine.

You are now my enemy.

“Sasuke, Seishiryu! Breakfast!”

My eyes opened slowly, wanting desperately to close. A groan fell from me. Why were my cheeks wet? My eyes were swollen. My cheek was pressed against what felt like skin. Blinking, I pushed myself up, only to be pulled back down by an arm around my waist. A groan came from under me. For a moment, I panicked, but when I looked up, I saw black, tousled hair, and closed eyes. I knew that face.

"Sasuke, Seishiryu! Breakfast! Come on down!" It was a woman yelling up at us.

It took me a minute, but the memories came. I'm at Sasuke's house. He . . . he must've stayed with me last night. Did I fall asleep on him? The last thing I could remember was crying and clinging to him. I couldn't remember anything past that. Only darkness.

"Sasuke, Seishiryu!"

He finally twitched, groaning again. "Ugh, I am hungry." His eyes opened while I was staring at him. He was staring up at the ceiling, a bemused look on his face, as though it took him a moment to remember, too. Then he smiled, closed his eyes again. "Did you sleep better, Seishiryu?"

I tensed. Though I hadn't had any nightmares after he came in, I was still very sleepy. Er, maybe not sleepy as much as tired. Not so much physically tired as emotionally.

He twitched, then laughed. "My arm is numb."

"O-oh!" I sprang up, and he let me this time. "S-sorry."

He shrugged, sitting up to stretch his arm. "'S'okay!" He smiled wider at me. "You fell asleep, and I carried you to the bed, but you wouldn't let go of me, so I just stayed."

My face warmed. I looked away. "Sorry," I said softly.

"'S'okay!" he repeated. "Any more nightmares?"

I shook my head, not looking at him. "No. I-I slept all right."

"Good." He stood, having taken the edge of the bed facing the door. "I'm glad you didn't have any nightmares, but I'm hungry! So let's go eat, okay?"

I nodded. "Okay. Sure."

He gestured to the dresser. "All the clothes we got you are in there. You should have plenty of clothes to choose from."

Nodding again, I pushed myself to the edge of the bed, avoiding looking at him. It was awkward around him, knowing he'd just witnessed me crying. I didn't ever want to do something like that again.

He stretched out his back, stretching his arms out behind him, yawning. "Ah. Well, I'm gonna go get dressed now." He started to turn, then stopped, and looked at me, head tilted. A minute later, he reached forward, grabbing me to pull me into a hug. "I won't let anyone hurt you." he said softly before letting go. With a small smile, he turned and walked out.

I walked to the dresser, opening the first drawer. The drawer was filled with shirts. The second drawer had shorts. The third had pants. The fifth had underwear. I chose a black, long-sleeved shirt and a pair of black pants, along with black underwear. Checking the shirt, I saw an odd symbol on the back. I tilted my head, staring at it.

A knock at my door. "May I come in?" The voice was familiar. The woman's voice.

I nodded, realized she couldn't see through the closed door, and said, "Uh, yea."

The door opened. The woman walked in. It was my first time really seeing her. She had long black hair pulled into a ponytail and kind, black eyes. She was very pretty, and looked very comforting, compassionate. She walked toward me slowly, smiling a kind smile. "I assume you are probably confused. Let's talk for a moment, okay?" She walked toward the bed, sitting and patting the edge.

Carrying the clothes, I walked to sit next to her.

"I'm sorry about your family, Seishiryu." She patted my knee. "It'll be okay, though. The Hokage will find out who was responsible, and they will be punished. However, that's not what I came here to talk to you about." She gently took the shirt from me, turning it over to trace the symbol on the back. "This is the symbol of our Clan. The Uchiha Clan. Because of that contract we signed with your family," she looked at me, "you are as good as family to us.

"And because of this, you can wear our symbol on your back. You are welcome here, and will be treated as family. The Hokage has okayed the idea of you becoming a Leaf Ninja, which means once you're ready, you will join Sasuke in the academy. I know it's probably not what you saw for your life, and maybe it even feels a bit like a betrayal to your own village to become a Leaf Ninja, but you are lucky, really, to be given that opportunity.

"We didn't expect the Hokage to be so generous with you, but I, for one, am grateful." She smiled. "I'm outnumbered by the guys here, and it's always nice to have a team member be added, you know? At least I can have someone to teach certain things to now. And I know you're better off here than being found by someone random in the forest. You're safe here, Seishiryu, surrounded by some of the strongest Ninja around. And I want you to know, you are welcome here, too." She smiled, tilting her head, eyes closing. "It's something we didn't see coming, but we will all make the best of it."

She stood. "Come. I will give you the grand tour of the complex after breakfast. Or Sasuke can, too. I'm sure he'd enjoy that."

"Mother, Sasuke has to get to the Academy," the voice came from the doorway. "And I have to go to finish my mission. Dad will be gone today, too, so it looks like you'll have to give her the grand tour."

She smiled. "Good. It's nice to have some girl time, isn't it?" She directed that smile at me.

And though I didn't admit it, the words "girl time" frightened me. I was never the most girly one. "I don't have to wear any gowns, do I?"

She shook her head. "No. You can wear what you've picked out. I just meant I would give you the tour, show you around, and teach you a few things that I haven't been able to teach my boys." She smiled at the boy in the doorway. "No offense, Itachi-Chan, but you don't have exactly have the best cooking skills or gardening skills."

He smiled back. "I know, mother. It's okay." He turned the smile to me. "It's been a couple years, but I hope you remember me."

I nodded. "You're Sasuke's brother. I remember you. You're the one that helped teach me how to throw a kunai."

His smile widened, then faded. "I'm glad you remember me, but I have to go now. I hope you enjoy your time here with my mother. I'm sure that once you get the hang of this place, she'll let you walk around the village, too." He smiled one last time before leaving.

The woman stood. She was still smiling. "By the way, my name is Mokoto. Come, I will show you to the bathroom."

"You fold them like this," she demonstrated, folding the dough in half again, "and take the knife. Cut it at the ends. And you have noodles! Once they dry. You air-dry them."

I followed her lead, peeking over at hers. Hers were much more neat, more straight, than mine. I frowned at my messily folded dough.

She chuckled. "You'll just get better and better at it from here on out, so don't worry."

"Mom, I'm home!" The door slammed. I turned in time to see Sasuke spring into the kitchen, grinning. "Iruka-Sensei says I'm the best shot in my class!"

"That's great, Sasuke. I'm so proud of you." She walked toward him, carrying a bowl of soup we'd made, setting it on the table. "Here. Eat up. Seishiryu and I made this for the family."

He jumped into the chair, grabbing his chopsticks. "Thank you, both of you!" He grinned at me, then started to eat.

"Why don't you join him? I think you've done enough today. You deserve a break." She smiled at me, returning to her chopping board to finish.

I pulled up a chair, and she set a bowl in front of me. "Thank you, Mokoto-San."

"You're welcome, but you don't have to call me that."

"So what did you two do today?" Itachi spoke, walking into the kitchen. He had a cut under his eye. "Have fun at the academy, nii-chan?"

Sasuke nodded, sucking a noodle into his mouth. "Yup! Sensei says I'm the best shot in class!"

"That's great. What about you two?" He glanced at his mother, but looked at me, smiling softly. "Did you have fun?"

"She taught me how to make noodles, and lots of other things today. And showed me the herb garden."

"She's a master chef in the making." Mokoto set a bowl on the table, sliding it to Itachi. "Here. Eat. Courtesy of both of us."

Itachi sat, taking a bite with his chopsticks. "It's very good. I can see what you mean, mother."

"Thank you!" I said brightly, smiling.

"Sasuke, I was thinking. Why don't you take Seishiryu out to explore the village?"

He nodded. "'Kay! I'll show her the Academy! When is she joining us there?"

"The Hokage said she can join on Monday."

"Three days? Is he sure she's ready for that?"

"He stopped by with some medics today. She has made a complete recovery already. Not a scratch on her."

He stared at me. "Really. Well, that's amazingly lucky. Just yesterday we were told to change your bandages daily."

"Well, it's really thanks to Sasuke. He helped me."

He shot me a grin. "You're welcome."

Itachi reached over, ruffling his brother's hair. "I'm glad he managed to help you. I'm also glad you'll be joining the Academy. You'll make lots of new friends there, I'm sure."

I looked down at my soup, taking a silent bite. "What if people don't like me?"

"Nonsense!" Sasuke said brightly. "I like you. Why wouldn't anyone else?"

"Because I'm weird-looking."

Silence.

"Seishiryu," Itachi said softly, "not everyone looks the same as everyone else. It would be a very dull world if everyone looked the same, don't you think so?"

I shrugged.

"I think you're pretty," his little brother said. "I don't know why you don't think so."

"Katsu says-"

"Katsu tried to kill you," Itachi said softly, "so I wouldn't put any stock into what she had to say to you. You may stand out a bit, but you weren't meant to blend in. Sometimes it's best to stand out a bit. Set yourself apart from others. Embrace your unique skills, instead of running from them or trying to change them. You are you, and that should never change."

"Yea. Besides, I like you. I like how you stand out, because you're not like anyone else. And I like that. You're pretty, and I don't care what anyone says."

I stared at my soup for a minute, then nodded. "Okay. I can go explore. Might as well, right?" I forced a small, half smile. "I'm gonna be here for awhile, anyway."

"Great!" Sasuke picked his bowl up, drank the last bit of broth. "Whenever you're ready."

I glanced up at him, with a slight nod. "Okay. I'm ready. I've already eaten a lot today. I'm not very hungry."

"She's right. She and I indulged in some sweets earlier." Mokoto smiled. "We'll have some of those sweets when you get back, okay?"

Sasuke nodded, sprinting over to me, grabbing my hand. "All right, mom. We'll be back. I promise." He pulled me toward the door. "We will take the forest path to the village, so I can show you my favorite places. 'Kay?"

I nodded. "Yea. Sure."

A couple hours later, we were walking through the village, and he was pointing out places. "That's Ichiraiku ramen stand. Right there you can get really good sweet dumplings." He stopped, turning to face me, smiling. "You now know the village! Except the Academy. I'll take you there, and we'll head back home. It's getting late. 'Kay?"

I nodded. "Okay."

We ended up in front of a large, fenced in building. There were kids standing around, training, fighting. "Who are these people?"

"Some of them are my classmates–our classmates. Some of them are older, and some are younger."

"Sasuke!" a voice called from beside us. Looking over, I saw a man with brown hair, a headband, and a scar over his nose. He waved. "Is this the new student?" He walked over.

Sasuke nodded. "Yup. This is Seishiryu Hoshikuzu."

"Well, hello, there. I'm Iruka-Sensei. I see you're wearing the Uchiha symbol. A relative of yours, Sasuke?"

He shook his head. "Nope! She's my betrothed. That's what it's called. It's like fiancé, but not quite."

"Oh. I see." He studied me. "Well, Seishiryu, I'm honored you will be joining our Academy."

"She's really good, too. Her aim is almost as good as mine."

I gave him a look. "'Almost'?"

He smiled. "Yea."

He apparently didn't catch my meaning, and I turned away, not feeling like I really wanted to push the issue. A girl caught my attention, anyway.

She was training by herself in the corner, but her stance was really bad. She kept overreaching or tripping over her pant legs.

"Excuse me," I said softly, walking over to the black-haired girl. "You're overreaching.” 

She jumped, whirling, eyes wide.

I knelt so I could roll her pant legs up a bit. "And you keep tripping over your pants." I rolled both pant legs up just enough to not be in the way, and stood, smiling. "I can help you train, if you want."

Her eyes were still wide. "R-really?"

I nodded, smiling. “I can help you get your balance. Your stance is decent, but you keep spreading your legs a bit too far out, and you're reaching too far over.”

"O-overreaching?"

I nodded again, demonstrating. "Look, my legs aren't more than shoulder-width apart. Your feet should be no more than shoulder width apart. If they are further apart than that, you will be knocked off balance."

She copied me slowly, eyes still a bit wide. "L-like th-this?"

Nod. "Yup! You got it now!"

A shy, small smile appeared. "Th-thank yo-you."

"You're welcome." I straightened, still smiling. "If you ever want to train with me, let me know. I'll help you get your stances better than anyone else in this school!"

"I-I don't thi-think I cou-could be bet-better."

"Oh, no. You've got promise, really!"

She smiled shyly. "Y-you're ver-very nice."

"Any time you want to train, just let me know."

With a glance around the classroom, I spotted Hinata, and sprinted toward her so I could sit beside her. "Hi!"

She smiled. "H-hi! H-how did y-you sle-sleep?"

I shrugged. "About as well as usual. You?"

"G-great. I-I rea-really lik-liked ha-hanging ou-out."

"Me too. I'm glad you came to the woods with me. I would've gotten lost on my own."

She smiled shyly. "N-no, y-you woul-would've been ok-okay."

"Nah. I'd have gotten so lost. Nobody would've ever found me." I grinned. "But I'm glad you came. It was fun."

"I h-had fun, t-too."

Someone sat on the other side of me. Glancing up, I saw a brown-haired boy with a dirt smudge on his face. It looked like a paw print. "You have something right there."

He looked at me. "Huh? Which side?"

"The left side."

He reached up, rubbing at his cheek. "Is it gone?"

I nodded. "Yup. Looked like a paw print."

He grinned at me. "Hey. So, you're the new girl, right?"

"Yup. I'm Seishiryu."

"Kiba." He reached his hand out to take mine before I offered it. "Nice to meet you!"

"Nice to meet you, too."

"So! How long you been training to be a Ninja?"

"Since I was real little."

"Where are you from?"

My heart stopped, thinking of my village. "Hoshigakure," I said softly.

"You have the Uchiha symbol on your back. How come?"

"I'm living with them." I didn't want to say anything about the contract. "I guess that's all the clothing they had, the ones with the symbols on them." I shrugged. "Oh well."

Sasuke glanced back at me, perhaps hearing his Clan's name. I wasn't sure. He was close to the front of the room, having been told the night before I wanted to start fresh, and wanted to sit by Hinata.

I avoided his glance. "What about you? I'm guessing you're from here?"

He nodded. "Inuzuka Clan! We raise dogs." He grinned, and I caught glimpse of sharp canines.

"Hey, you have fangs."

His grin widened, and he nodded. "Yup! It's 'cause we're more canine-like."

"I have them, too. See?"

He nodded. "I saw! Do you get them from your Clan?"

I shook my head. "Nope. Only I got them." I leant back, gesturing to the silent Hinata. "This is Hinata. She's my new friend."

She smiled. "W-we know ea-each other."

"Hey, Hinata! You were so quiet, I didn't even know you were there! What's up?"

"No-nothing."

The man from before stepped into the room. "Settle down, kids. We've got a lot to do today. As some of you have figured out, we have a new student. Due to this, we're going to just do review on everything we've learnt since we've begun learning here."

Kiba sighed, leaning back in his chair. "Today's gonna be an easy day! If it's just review."

"S-sometimes re-reviewing something y-you think you kn-know, you c-can learn m-more."

"That's very true! My dad says that if you don't go back to where you started, you'll never get past where you are." The words fell from me before I realized it, but once I said it, my heart hurt once I realized what I'd said.

A hand touched my shoulder. "Hey, you okay?"

I glanced up at him, giving a small, half smile. "Yea. Why?"

"Well, I'm pretty good at sensing other people's feelings." He patted my shoulder. "And I thought that you felt sad."

I shrugged. "I'm okay. Really."

"Up, boys and girls. Up. We're going outside. We are going to test ourselves and see where we all are in our training. So, follow me!"

The students stood, and I stood with them, following everyone outside, to the fenced in area.

The man stood near the door. "We are going to have a sparring session."

"S-sparring?" Hinata stammered.

"Who's gonna be paired against who?"

"Girls vs. girls, and boys vs. boys. That's how we're going to do it this time. Boys, line up against that wall. Girls, line up behind me."

I followed Hinata, standing behind her in the line.

"Let's do . . . Sasuke against Naruto."

I tensed, looking toward the excited black-haired boy. A blond stepped forward with him, bouncing subtly. "You're going down, Sasuke!"

He laughed. "I guess we'll see about that, won't we?"

"Wait a minute, you two. First of all, let's go over the rules. No weapons at all. The first one to hit the ground is the loser. You must remain on your feet or hands at all times. Once you have fallen, the fight is over. No jutsu."

"Aw," Sasuke said softly, scuffing his foot on the ground. "Okay, fine." He crouched in a fighting stance. "Ready."

The blond bounced up and down, obviously excited, and finally assumed a fighting stance. His stance wasn't very good at all. "I'm ready!"

"One," the Sensei started, "two," a pause, "Three!"

Sasuke didn't move, only subtly bouncing on the balls of his feet. The blond–Naruto–lunged forward, pulling his arm back. Sasuke sidestepped, grabbed the back of his shirt and tossed him away.

Naruto hit the ground, face first. He grunted. "Ouch!"

"Naruto's out."

"What? We just got started!"

"I said the first to hit the ground was out."

"Aw, come on!"

"Those were the rules, Naruto. You should've broken your fall rather than let yourself take it."

Naruto pushed himself up, frowning at the ground. "One day, I'm gonna win. I'm gonna be the best."

"Yea, sure." Sasuke moved to the back of the line, sitting down.

"Girls next. We're gonna go with . . . Ino and Hinata."

Hinata's eyes were wide when I turned to look at her. "I-I c-can-"

"Right! You can." I smiled. "And if you lose, who cares? Just give it your best! You're better than she is, anyway."

She smiled shyly. "Y-you think?"

I nodded. "Of course. You're really good, better than you think you are. Just have a bit more confidence and pretend you are sparring with me!"

A small nod. "Th-thank you." She walked toward the Sensei, meeting the girl with the short blond hair. She slowly got into a fighting crouch, and I could see her hands shaking.

"Whoo! You got this!" I yelled, waving. "Go, Hinata!"

She glanced at me, smiling slightly, and I watched the Sensei call the start of the spar. The blond girl rushed toward her, foot-sweeping her, but Hinata jumped over her leg at the last second, jumping away from her twice, then turned to reach for the blond.

The blond dodged the grab, grabbing Hinata's hand in retaliation.

Hinata's eyes widened. In a quick maneuver, she twisted her wrist out of Ino's hand, and kicked her legs out from under her.

Ino ended up on the ground, eyes wide. "Y-you beat me."

Hinata stared at her with wide eyes. "I-I did it?"

"Good job, Hinata! Go on, to the back of the line, both of you."

Hinata smiled, turned to stare at me. She waved, taking a deep breath, jogged toward me.

I grabbed her in a hug. "I told you, you could do it!"

"Th-thank you!"

"For what?"

"B-believing in m-me."

I smiled. "Aw, you don't need me to believe in you. You need you to believe in you!"

"Good job, Hinata!" Kiba called from the other line, waving. "You did great!"

She blushed, giggling a bit, then walked to the back of the line.

The Sensei called out another battle, then another, and another, and then called, "Sakura against Seishiryu!"

I shot a grin back at Hinata, and jogged toward the Sensei, ready to face my opponent. A girl with short pink hair and green eyes came froward. And for a moment, I was reminded of my twins. Seuiave, with her pale blond hair and light blue eyes, and Shikotai with her pink hair and pink eyes. I didn't let that thought stay with me long.

"You got this, Se!" Sasuke called. "Take her down!"

The pink-haired girl's face fell slightly. She pointed at me. "I'm taking you down!"

I crouched, the way Papa had taught me. "I'm ready."

"Ready, Iruka-SenShi."

"One, two, and three."

She darted at me.

Taking a risk, I stood my ground, waiting for her to reach me. Once she was in front of me, I grabbed the collar of her shirt, placed my foot in her abdomen, and flipped backward, landing atop her with my hands on her collar, and my foot still in her stomach. I held her there, looking up. "Do I win?"

"You win, Seishiryu."

Green eyes glared at me. "Not fair! She pinned me!"

"I never said you couldn't pin."

"But I can break free!" She reached up, breaking my hold on her collar, and I grabbed her wrists and slammed them down, moving so my knee was in her stomach rather than my foot. She glared at me. "Not fair!"

Knowing I'd beaten her, I stood, then offered my hand down to her. "Sorry, but we were told to test our skills."

She smacked my hand away. "I don't need your help!" She stood, brushed herself off, cast me another glare, and walked to the back of the line.

With a shrug, I joined Hinata. 

On the way back to the compound, I hummed inside my head, thinking about all the things I'd learnt so far. I'd made two friends already, and I was happy with that. I’d sent Sasuke home while I’d stayed behind to train and talk with Kiba and Hinata. And, honestly? It was a nice break from my reality, though I hadn’t told them how I’d gotten to be here.

"Seishiryu, hey, what are you doing, walking home alone?"

Looking up, I caught a glimpse of black eyes before Itachi caught up to me. "I stayed behind to train with my friends."

"I see. Well, it's a good thing I came to check on you. Okaa-San and Otou-San aren't home, so you guys are stuck with me." He smiled softly. "I made some pumpkin pie. It’s waiting back home. How's that sound?"

I smiled. "That sounds awesome."

He smiled, reaching down for my hand. "C'mon, then. Let's go get some food together."

I took his hand, and felt oddly at home. Walking back to the compound, I started to tell him about my day, about how everything went, and he listened. He made comments every now and then, asking me how I felt about Hinata, Kiba, Iruka, and the other students, and asked me a couple times if I felt comfortable at the Academy. It felt good to talk to him about it. When we'd reached the compound, I followed him inside, and he started to busy himself around the kitchen.

Sasuke sat at the kitchen table, bent over some sort of book. He glanced up when I entered, a huge smile crossing his face. "Hey! Seishiryu, Nii-San! I was wondering where you were. Did you have fun sparring with Hinata?"

I nodded, going over to join him at the table. "Yup. It was really fun. Kiba joined in, and we really had a lot of fun."

Itachi was moving quickly, and he almost immediately had a piece of pumpkin pie on each of our plates. He smiled at me. "I already had it ready. We were just waiting on you, so I ran out to get you."

"Oh. I-I'm sorry! I hope it's not cold. I didn't mean to have anyone waiting for me."

He smiled softly. "Don't worry, Seishiryu. It's okay. You got carried away, it happens." He pushed a plate toward me. "Unfortunately, I'm not much of a cook, but one thing I know how to do, is pumpkin pie. So that'll have to do for dessert for tonight. We’ll have some leftovers for dinner"

I smiled. "It's okay. I've never had pumpkin pie, anyway, so it's a good experience."

"Well, I hope you like it." He stood quickly. "I forgot the teas. Sasuke, you want tea, right?"

He nodded. "Yup. Se prefers milk, though."

"I'll get her milk, then."

I stared at Sasuke. "H-how did you know I prefer milk?"

"Whenever you're offered tea, you turn it down, but when you're offered milk, you accept," he said quickly. "So I figure you must like milk a lot better than tea."

I nodded. "I-I do, but I didn't think it was noticeable."

"It is."

A glass of milk was set in front of me, and a cup of tea in front of Sasuke. Itachi sat back down. "I should know that, but I'm really not home a lot lately. I apologize for that."

"It's okay," I said softly. "No worries."

"Great. Well, I'll be home tonight, so we'll have dinner, watch a couple movies, and then you two will go to bed promptly at nine. Understood?"

Despite his warnings of going to bed promptly at nine, we stayed up until eleven, watching movies until nine, when he offered to take us outside to help us practice throwing, which we took him up on. After that, he helped Sasuke better his Jutsu, and I sat aside and watched.

Finally, when we were both tired, we ended up going to bed, and after much pleading, Sasuke and I shared his room, while Itachi read a story to us.

It was all so homey. It made me miss my brother. Laying in bed after everyone had fallen asleep, I curled on my side, ignoring the boy behind me, and started to cry.

He turned over, and, still deep in sleep, threw his arm around me and mumbled, "'S'okay to cry."

And I fell asleep like that, feeling almost as at home with this family as I had with my own family.

When I awakened, he still had his arm around me, and he was curled around my back. It was Itachi's voice calling up to wake us, and I found myself wondering what happened to his mom waking us up. I found myself slightly missing her wakeup calls.

He groaned. "Five more minutes," he grumbled, arm around my waist tightening. "Ugh. Too early."

"And this, Nii-Chan, is why we go to bed at nine, instead of eleven or later." The voice was right in the room.

He groaned again. "Nii-San, we don't have classes today! Why are you waking me up?"

"Because I figured you'd enjoy going on a little mission of our own."

At that, he rolled away instantly and jumped up. "With you?"

He nodded. "Yup. Seishiryu's going to have to come, too, of course."

At those words, I was suddenly being shaken. "C'mon, c'mon! We're going on a mission! Get up!"

This time, it was me groaning. "What mission?"

"We're going to go camping."

That made my eyes open wide. I sat up. "C-camping? Like, for real?"

A nod. "There's a catch, though. We need to gather herbs. This is a learning camping trip, to learn what herbal remedies are used for what, what the names of certain herbs are, and what their uses are."

Actually sounded like a lot of fun. "So, what kind of herbs are we gonna be learning about?"

"Stuff like nightshade, I hope."

He laughed. "Well, you'll just have to get up and find out. Be ready in ten minutes."

Fifteen minutes later, we were hiking through the forest. Every few seconds, we would stop, and Itachi would point out a plant and tell us about it. After about an hour of that, he started pointing out plants and asking us what they were.

It went on for a bit. We stopped for lunch, and to rest a few times, talking more about herbs and herbal remedies, until it started to grow a little dark, then we set up camp. Once everything was set up, we sat under the stars, staring up at them while Itachi pointed out constellations.

Until I shivered.

Sasuke looked over at me. "Are you cold, Seishiryu?"

I shrugged, wrapping my arms around my torso. "I'm fine." I hadn't really thought he'd notice.

He stripped his long sleeved shirt off, tossing it at me. "Here. Put this on. Nii-San and I will make a fire. Right?" He smiled at his brother.

Itachi nodded, standing up. "Right, Nii-Chan. I apologize, Seishiryu. I didn't realize it was growing cold. I'll gather some firewood. Sasuke, make a little pit."

He nodded, moving forward to start digging with his hands until he created a small, patted down pit. By the time he'd finished, Itachi had returned with an armful of sticks, and a couple logs. "All right, good job, Nii-Chan. Would you do the honors of lighting it?"

He nodded, eyes lighting up. "Yup!" He took a step back, eyes locked on the campfire, and after a couple, quick handsigns, he lit the fire. His eyes lit up more. "Hey, I did it on my first try!"

"Good job, Nii-Chan! I'm proud of you." He walked over to him, mussing his hair. "Good job."

He smiled up at his brother, then over at me, walking over quickly. He held his hand out. "C'mon, you're gonna have to get closer than that to get warm."

I took his hand, let him pull me to my feet, and lead me to the fire. Pulling my hand free, I sat down, curling my knees against my chest. "So, did we get lots of good herbs today?" I looked up at Itachi.

He nodded. "We did well today. I'm proud of you both for finding the ginger root, too." He smiled at me. "And great job locating the mint, Seishiryu."

I smiled. "I could smell it."

"Right." He tossed something at me.

I caught it, looking down. The ginger root. "What's this for?"

"Smell it."

I smelled. It had an interesting smell. I liked it. "What for?"

"Now you can identify it by smell.” He caught it when I tossed it back, then tossed it at Sasuke. "Smell it, memorize the scent."

He smelled, holding it between his hands for a few minutes, staring at it, then tossed it back. "Got it!"

"Good." He put it back into the bag he'd brought with him for the herbs. It had many individual pockets inside it. "Now, let's get some dinner and tea on to boil, and then get some sleep."

"What are we going to eat?"

"I'm going to teach you to hunt, skin, and prepare food. Let's start with rabbits." He'd pulled something from his other bag. A still, fluffy rabbit. "Ready?"

I touched the soft, full fur that had been set aside to dry, finishing off the last of my meat. "What are we going to do with the fur?"

"Well, I was thinking we could make it into a pillow," Sasuke replied. "I mean, it's fluffy and soft, and it would make a cool pillow, wouldn't it, Nii-San?"

"We could do that, but we'll have to catch another rabbit tomorrow. Who wants the honors of catching tomorrow's rabbit?"

"Ooh, me, me!"

Me? I wasn't so sure I wanted to kill a rabbit, then skin it, and cook it again. "Why are we doing it that way? Killing the rabbit?"

"Because I want to teach you two to live off the land, rather than having everything served to you hand and foot. It's time for a bit of survival training." He smiled. "Don't worry. Just remember to thank the rabbit for its sacrifices. It sacrifices its life, so you can live on. Always remember to thank him for that."

I nodded. "Okay. I guess I . . . I can do that."

"It's the way the natural world goes, Seishiryu," he said softly, probably sensing my indecision. "In order to survive, you must be willing to make sacrifices. Must be willing to fight for the right to continue to survive. It's how things are."

I nodded again. "Okay. I understand." I placed what food I had left over on the plate, yawning. "I'm getting sleepy, so I guess I'm going to turn in."

A look crossed his face. "I would wait. Just a few more minutes." He smiled. "It'll be worth it, I promise." He turned toward his little brother. "You finished?"

He nodded, setting his plate down. "Yea, what's up?"

He smiled wider. "Just follow me. It'll be worth it." His eyes twinkled. "But you'll have to hurry." He stood, and waited for us to stand before he started to walk toward the hill. We followed in silence, scurrying behind him, a couple of yawns being the only noise that broke the silence. Once we were settled atop the hill, he stopped, sat down, and looked up, pointing. "Watch."

I sat next to him, watching his little brother sit on the other side of him, and we looked upward. The stars were bright that night, very beautiful. It brought a smile to my face.

Until one shot across the sky. I gasped, and several others followed. "M-meteors!"

"Right! This shower only happens every hundred years or so. I found out it was due to happen tonight, and I thought you two would enjoy it." He glanced at me, bumping my shoulder. "Especially since you were named after the stars."

I smiled wider. "I wasn't just named after them, watch this!" I reached up, focusing on my power, felt it rise, and–much to my own surprise–a large, sparkling star dropped from the sky, fast as lightning, toward us. It fell, faster and faster, and I focused my power on it, pulling it toward us, and stood, raising both arms above my head.

"I-the sta-it's falling!"

"We better move," warned the calm, slightly rushed voice.

I didn't move. "Just stay, you'll be okay!"

In a flash, it stopped a few dozen feet above us. It came closer, hovering a few feet now above my hands, and I directed it slowly to a spot next to us, a couple feet away from me, letting it drop.

My energy dropped sharply the instant the star was set on the hill. I swayed, started to fall, and an arm wrapped around my shoulders, keeping me upright. Glancing up, I met black, wide, shining eyes. I smiled. "'S'okay," I muttered. "Just don't touch it."

His older brother was standing now, too, staring at the glowing, fiery ball. "Did you do that, Seishiryu?" His voice shook just a bit.

I nodded. "I think so. I didn't mean to, but it's what happened." I'd been about to simply make a small star, like I had for my other friend, but my power had taken a different turn. "I didn't know I could do that."

"I-is that a real star?"

I nodded again, pushing away from him to walk up to it. "You can't touch it, it'll burn you, but I can." I touched it lightly, and it crumbled under my hand. Slowly, at first, but then faster, it turned to dust. "I-I didn't mean to break it." I hadn't, yet I could still feel it connected to me, still feel it deep inside me. I pulled on that link, and watched the dust rise. "I-I can–I can control the dust!" It was draining, and hard to do, but it rose when I pulled at it.

Movement beside me, a ripping sound, and Itachi knelt beside me, holding a small, ragged black square of cloth. "Put some of the dust in here, and you can use it as a bag."

He'd ripped part of his shirt to make that ragged piece of cloth. It wasn't too small, or too large. I held my hands out and pulled the dust toward me, piling it into my hands, and turned, placing it on the cloth.

"It'll be able to hold a lot more than that. Keep going until I tell you to stop."

I nodded, and obeyed. Every time I filled my hands with the dust, I felt a portion of my energy drain away. So hard, but I knew with the right amount of training, I could get better at it. I filled it until he said to stop, then he gathered all four corners together.

"Here, Nii-San," I heard ripping cloth, looked over to see Sasuke had torn a thin strip from his own shirt. "Use this to tie it shut."

"Good idea, Nii-Chan," his brother replied, taking the strip of cloth. He tied it shut. "When we get home, I'll make a better bag for it."

I nodded, taking the bag from him. "Use these cloth pieces for it. I want to remember where the bag came from forever." I smiled up at him.

He ruffled my hair. "All right, Onee-chan. I'll do that for you." He stood, brushed himself off. "Let's get some rest, all right?"

I stared up at him, mind numb from him calling me sister. After a moment, I smiled, and said, "Okay, big brother, let's go sleep!"

He reached down for my hand, took his little brother's hand, and we started off.

I was still going over him calling me little sister once Sasuke and I were settled in the tent. He hadn't joined yet, said he had some more things to do, but I felt . . . oddly happy about being able to call him my brother now.

"You know, you really are a part of this family," the boy beside me said softly, in a thoughtful voice. "I mean, with the contract, you're like, I don't know, an honorary Uchiha. That doesn't bother you, does it?"

I looked over at him. "No, why?"

"I just thought. . . . When he called you that, you looked stunned, and a little sad, and I was just making sure you weren't upset about being part of my family."

I shook my head. "No, no. I just . . . miss my own brother, I guess."

"Well, now, you got another brother." He smiled at me. "And a new family. Even my dad calls you his daughter. I've heard him. Even he thinks of you as family."

"He-he does?"

A nod. "I've heard him, when he talks to my mom, or my brother." I looked over to see him smiling, eyes closed. "I hope you're comfortable, and happy, here. We like having you here."

It made me smile a bit, despite tearing up. "I-I . . . I like being here, too." And it was true. Despite the circumstances, despite everything that had happened, the past couple months of being here, of being part of this family. . . .

I really did like it.

"I hope you think of this as your home."

And I was starting to think of this as my home.

What bothered me about that was, I was afraid I was going to forget where I came from.

Even now, closing my eyes, I could barely remember my mom's face, or my dad's face, or my brother's face, or my sisters' faces. I remembered their voices, though, at night. At night, I often would hear my dad tucking me in, wishing me a good night. I would hear my sisters barging into my room minutes later so we could sneak out. I would hear my mother catching us in the middle of that, and sending us to our respective rooms.

And I would hear my sister's chilling, hateful voice, telling me she hated me.

And that, that was when I often started to cry.

Not tonight. Tonight? All I could hear was "little sister." I smiled, rolling onto my side, and closed my eyes. "This is my home," I said softly.

"And this is your family now," came the soft, sleepy reply. "And that'll never change."