Chapter 8

Sleeping in the same room as an obviously pissed off Uchiha prince was…uncomfortable to put it lightly. Not only did he ignore me after I finished bandaging myself up and exited the bathroom, but he even slept with his back turned to me all night long.

It was hard to fall asleep, and when I did, it was hard to stay asleep. Morning came too soon and a sliver of sunshine peeked past the thick black curtain to land, you guessed it, right on my face.

I woke up with a groan, rubbing my face with my good hand and suffering from a serious headache. I froze mid-yawn when I realized I didn't feel even an ounce of discomfort from my injuries and dropped the hand on my face so I could look at the one I'd sliced last night. When I'd gone to sleep, it was heavily bandaged and still bleeding to the point that I was worried I'd need stitches, but now there was just an angry red line looking up at me. When I looked further up to check on my arm, it was in a similar state of healing.

A wave of paranoia came over me and I shifted to sit up quickly, frowning when my headache started to ring in my ears, but I ignored it. Things just aren't making sense anymore. When I woke up after being attacked the first time, there wasn't so much as a scratch to commemorate the injury that'd been on my neck so I'd brushed it off as maybe being a terrible dream. For it to happen two times in a row, though, I can't just ignore it! How am I healing like this?

I looked past my arm to see that the large bed was empty, but I could hear water running in the ensuite so I knew Sasuke was nearby. My mouth formed a confused frown as I stretched my arms above my head. I wonder why I didn't have a mark left on me the first time and then this time there are still marks where my injuries had been.

With a shake of my head, I rose from the sofa and crossed the room so I could sort through the two drawers that Sasuke had allotted me in his dresser. I finally realized that I can't let my thoughts fester on these things anymore because all it's doing is wearing me down and making me feel sick with anxiety.

After dressing, I combed my hair with my fingers before weaving it into a loose braid and letting it fall over my shoulder. I'm sure I have a massive bloody mess to clean up in the hall and down the stairs. A part of me felt like I'd stopped taking the danger I was in seriously after last night, but another part of me just didn't care anymore.

After going through not one but two bloody assaults, what else am I supposed to do? I can't just cower in Sasuke's room for three months. The chance of me surviving that long is low, so I might as well try and figure out if it really is Itachi attacking me or if something else altogether is going on. I can't take my mind off it. I need to know before it's too late.

My first attempt at approaching Mikoto had been a total and utter flop, so I had to be more detailed in the planning for attempt number two. I couldn't decide between Madara or just trying Mikoto again. It'll probably be Madara since he's the only one who I think would actually answer me, whether it be with an honest answer or him telling me he isn't able to help me.

I heard the familiar rumble of Sasuke's moody voice from behind the thick bathroom door, "Don't leave the room."

Over the past few nights, Sasuke'd opened up ever so slightly when it was just the two of us, especially after our odd conversation the first night. His voice now, though, was as cold and unemotional as it had been the day we'd met.

I let my forehead gently sit against the door of the exit and gently thumped it there a few times. He's not going to let me out of his sight now. Not only that, but things are going to be even more awkward because he's mad at me for some reason. I glanced over at the bathroom door as he opened it and shot me a glare.

The chance of him wanting to continue our conversation from the bathroom last night was zero to none, too. He crossed the room with just his pants on and I had to move away from the door because I couldn't fathom being within a yard of him when his muscled torso was glaring at me like that. So I let myself flop down on his bed, hoping he'd break his angered silence if I annoy him enough.

It was the first time I'd laid on the piece of furniture and my eyes widened when I realized it was the most comfortable bed I've ever felt in my life. Not only that, but it was drenched in Sasuke's naturally attractive scent. I forgot what I was doing for a moment and closed my eyes, taking a slow breath to bask in the comfort. He may have an attitude problem, but I can't deny that he smells wonderful.

When I opened my eyes, he was standing before me, looking down at me with the same guarded look as last night as he buttoned up his dark blue shirt. Heat rose to my cheeks at his sensual appearance.

The Uchiha twins practically ooze sex and this fact was amplified by the fact that A: his hair was wet and pushed back out of his face for once, and B: I could see some stray water droplets dripping at an agonizingly slow pace down the parts of his chest that were still uncovered.

I scrambled off the bed and created some space between us, trying to get the blush on my face to fade away. I was ashamed that I'd slipped up and let myself think of him in that kind of way. When I first met the royal family, I told myself that I wouldn't allow myself to have thoughts like that. That's also how I responded whenever Karin had asked me about it. I know my place and my place is very much not even close to being in the same league as any of the Uchihas.

Once I'd calmed my emotions, I turned back to address him with my hands clasped together nervously, "I want to apologize for last night."

He was sitting on the side of the bed putting his shoes on and paused to look at me. To my surprise, the hateful glare he'd offered not a few moments ago wasn't quite as angry and instead seemed more annoyed than anything.

"I don't know which part of what I said offended you, but you obviously didn't like it. It wasn't my intention to anger you."

He rose to his feet once he'd finished with his shoes and looked down at me with an unchanging expression for such a long time that I thought he'd turned to stone, but he then wordlessly nodded his head to the bathroom to signal that it was free for me to freshen up. Awkwardly, I fumbled past him and did just that, unsure of what else I could do to mend the situation.

Once I was ready to go, he opened the door of the room and motioned for me to lead the way. I did so without speaking, afraid that I'll just make things worse if I tried to talk to him again. As I suspected, he followed me quietly, remaining an arms distance away at all times. He really meant it when he said he wouldn't leave me alone again.

I tried to ignore his foreboding presence and focused on inspecting the hall for signs of the struggle last night. There wasn't a single drop of blood in sight. I looked back at him with a questioning expression, but he simply kept glaring at me so I decided to head further down the hall, following the path I'd taken whilst trying to escape last night. I was nearly frantic by the time we reached the floor level of the castle and there wasn't a hint of the incident. I stared down at the shiny white floor with a stunned expression.

How did all that blood just…disappear? Surely Sasuke hadn't cleaned it up because I would've woken up if he'd unlocked the bedroom door.

I turned on my heel to face the statuesque prince, who'd continued to follow in my steps while I inspected the floors, "Where is it?"

He looked down at me as though directly speaking with me was a chore, "Hn."

He's getting worse and worse at pretending things that happened, hadn't. Either that or he's just decided to ignore my questions from here on out.

Obviously what happened last night wasn't a dream and I have proof this time. Two long scars on my hand and arm were enough to convince me. On top of that, Sasuke's following me around like a dog does its owner. He wouldn't be doing that if I hadn't gotten upset about being left alone last night.

Before I could start to argue with him, Itachi's soft voice came from behind me and I nearly jumped out of my skin, naturally backing away and toward Sasuke as the older prince met my gaze. He stood with an indifferent face and crossed arms, "Mother is waiting for you two to join us for breakfast."

Sasuke simply grabbed my arm and pulled me along as he started walking at a steady pace toward the dining room. Itachi followed us in silence.

The queen and king had prepared omelets for breakfast. I poked at mine with a fork, eyes focused on the long line on my forearm. Ino was fine and I could tell nothing happened to her because she was flirting away with Sai as though no one else were around. The Uchiha prince seemed ecstatic to have her attention.

A hand gently touching my back made me jump once more, shaking me from my thoughts. I looked over to see Mikoto looking at me with a concerned look, "I heard you took quite a spill last night, Dear. Perhaps I should order a rug for the staircase to prevent something terrible like this happening again?"

My face heated up. It's obvious she knows what actually happened, but was trying to keep up appearances so I simply nodded and averted my gaze back down to my plate, "Y-Yes, Ma'am. I apologize for my clumsiness." I could feel multiple pairs of eyes watching me as I forced myself to start eating despite not having an appetite, if only to appear as though nothing was wrong.

Ino let out a giggle, "You've always been such a clutz, Sakura. I'm glad living in the castle hasn't changed you too much."

She and Mikoto shared a laugh and I forced a smile onto my lips as I looked up, only to see Fugaku glaring intently at me in my peripheral vision. The king is by far the most quiet of all the Uchihas, even more so than Itachi. He rarely joins conversations unless speaking with his wife directly. This didn't really intimidate me as much as his appearance because he strikes me as the type of person to observe and learn.

Despite his stoic attitude, the aura of leadership that strongly radiates from him is impossible to ignore. Everyone, including his own wife, is careful with their words when in his presence and that is what really frightened me.

My gaze danced back to my plate as the table simmered down. I could only force myself to take a few bites of food before I started to feel like I'd be sick and had to give up and settle for drinking some coffee. My stomach is in too tight of a knot for me to think about eating. My attacker had to be someone sitting at that table and they're probably already planning their next attempt at my life.

Once breakfast was complete, I offered to clear the table so Mikoto and Ino could go fabric shopping for her dress. Sasuke and Madara silently joined me. I washed, Madara rinsed, and Sasuke dried and put away the dishes. Once Madara and I were done washing and rinsing, Sasuke was putting away the last few plates when I gathered the courage to pull Madara out of the kitchen by his wrist.

When I turned to face the older royal, he had an unreadable expression on his face. I was too focused to think much of it and he frowned while gently pulling my hands into his own and spoke in a whisper, "Are you feeling alright? You didn't eat much."

I placed a finger to my mouth to signal that we should be quiet and he glanced back in the direction of the kitchen to make sure Sasuke wasn't there before nodding at me, "What's wrong?"

I turned my injured hand over in his grip so he could see the angry red lines on both my forearm and palm. "This is what's wrong. Last night these cuts were so deep I was worried I'd need stitches and now look at them! They're almost healed! On top of that, I was attacked again last night. Unless he has superhuman speed, there's no way it was Itachi because he was nowhere around when it happened."

His dark eyes stared down at the angry red lines on my skin in silence for a moment before he seemed to realize I was waiting for a response. When his eyes locked on mine again, a shiver went down my spine and I felt confused as to why my body was giving me warning signals.

"Itachi is a very quiet person. Are you sure he didn't sneak up on you?"

My mind reeled and just like after the first attack, the harder I tried to remember details, the more foggy my thoughts became, "I…I don't think so, "I let out a sigh of defeat, "I don't know."

Sai was there last night. He was right in front of me. There's no way Itachi's strong enough to both subdue his younger brother and attack me within seconds, right? I shuddered at the thought. What if he is, though?! That would mean I'm in more danger than I thought because if he has that kind of strength he could've easily murdered me by now. It would mean he's been toying with me like a lion plays with its food before killing it.

Madara's light grip on my hands suddenly disappeared and a terrible feeling started to crawl up my spine. Why is that?

"What are you doing?"

I looked up to see Sasuke staring at us with a very dissatisfied glare. I struggled to find an answer and luckily Madara was a much more natural actor, laying a hand on his nephew's shoulder with a grin, "There's no need to worry. Sakura and I were simply speaking about the upcoming ball, weren't we?"

He gave me a quick glance and I nodded quickly, eager to make the lie believable.

The younger Uchiha looked between us with an odd expression and shrugged off his relative's hand, "Since when do you call her by only her first name, Uncle?" His voice had an accusatory tone, like he didn't trust him.

Madara opened his mouth to reply, but Sasuke simply rolled his eyes and stalked past him, grabbing my upper arm roughly and pulling me along in the direction of the family room where I was supposed to go to wait for my sister and the queen to return. The act had annoyance running through my body, at first, but when I tugged against his firm hold and he didn't release me I started to get uncomfortable.

Once we're out of Madara's sight, Sasuke pulled me into the laundry room beneath the staircase and pushed me against the wall with just a little too much force. My brow furrowed as I met his angry gaze and fear started to rise in my chest. It was clear he wanted me to stand still and not move a muscle.

He put a hand against the wall on either side of my shoulders and looked down at me, making my hands start to shake nervously. The door had shut behind us, so no one would know we were in here unless they were looking.

His cold breath tickled my skin as he whispered in an angry voice, "Avoid being alone with men in this castle." It wasn't a request, but a demand, an order.

He seemed to be getting closer and closer to me and I panicked, pushing my hands against his chest to try and create some space between us to no avail. I'm sure he could feel my anxious shaking against him. Regardless, he pushed against me further until any move from either of us would cause us to touch and I felt my entire body start to tremble like only my hands had previously been.

I felt scared of him, I felt attracted to him, and I felt scared that I was attracted to him when he was currently treating me in such a way.

My voice wavered as I tried to mask my uneasiness, "You're a man that lives in this castle, Sasuke. Should I avoid being alone with you, too?"

His glare lessoned as his eyes widened slightly. He glanced down at our bodies before taking a step back and dropping his arms as though he hadn't realized what he'd been doing. After a moment, he turned his eyes to the floor, "Yes, but doing so would only put you in more danger."

My anger rose in my chest and trumped my terror, "I feel like I'm in danger right now. Can't you tell how scary this is for me? You didn't have to…You didn't…" I let out a sigh and tried to hold back overwhelmed tears, "If you wanted to talk to me, all you had to do was ask."

He stared at me like my words weren't really getting through to him and I tried to keep the pleading tone out of my voice as I continued, "This is…terrifying for me. I'm taking a huge risk trusting you. For all I know, you could be the one who's been doing these terrible things!"

As soon as the words left my mouth his eyes narrowed and my mouth clamped shut. It does make sense. Both times I'd been attacked, Sasuke was the first person to find me. What if he knew where I'd be because he was the reason I was there in the first place.

Tears welled up in my eyes and my limbs went rigid. Has this all been some type of scheme to amuse him? Is he patching me up each time so I can live to be his little plaything another day? Hell, I'm even sleeping in his bedroom so if I somehow figured it out, there'd only be one exit to prevent me from reaching. How stupid can I possibly be?

I shoved his arm out of my way and rushed out into the hall before my nerves could stop me, and thankfully he let me go. I wiped at the tears that fell anxiously, trying to gather my composure as I arrived in the family room and collapsed onto the rug by the fireplace.

By the time my sister arrived, I had calmed down and was sorting through a book on dance etiquette. She quickly set up a mannequin and started draping an expensive silk over it. Mikoto didn't join us so I figured she had other business to attend to.

After debating whether or not to bring the situation up to Ino, I decided to test the waters, grabbing her wrist. She turned to me in panic, "What's gotten into you?"

I glanced behind me once more to make sure the room was empty except for us, "Where is the queen?"

Ino mirrored my action, but with a confused look on her beautiful face, "She went to prepare some tea, why? Is something wrong?"

I swallowed nervously, wondering if I should be honest with her or not. Ino has never been one to handle fear well. She's like a storybook damsel in distress, relying on others to help her instead of trying to save herself. There's no way she'll be able to handle the mind-crippling terror I've been feeling for a week now. It would break her and she'd end up most likely getting both of us killed.

I released her wrist altogether, closing my eyes for a moment in defeat, "I, um, I want to do something for her before my sentence is up. You know, to thank her for her hospitality."

My sister's face lit up and she grinned happily, "Oh, I agree! She's been so kind when she doesn't have to be. What did you have in mind? Some kind of gift?"

I shook my head, avoiding her gaze since she's always been able to read me better than anyone else, "I'm not sure, yet. Let's think about it and come back to it later." I gestured to the mannequin she was working on, eager to change the subject, "So, have you finished your design, then?"

Ino gasped as though she'd just realized what she was doing, diving for the sketchpad atop the coffee table before flipping to a page in the middle and shoving it excitedly into my hands. She was practically vibrating with impatience as I looked at the sketch and she waited for my reaction.

The dress was very…confident. Yes, confident is the perfect word. It was to be made of silk and flow down the body like water, a train similar to those on Mikoto's other dresses trailing behind it. The front of the dress dipped down so low that it stopped just above the navel and the back dipped so low that it stopped at the hips. It was stunning, that's not the question, but I wondered if it was maybe a bit too revealing for the queen.

I sat the pad back down, "It's wonderful, Ino! Has the queen seen this yet?"

She nodded eagerly, "I showed her three different options and she chose this one." Oh, well that works out fine then!

I sighed with relief, "You're much better at this than I'll ever be at anything, Ino."

The blond waved a hand in dismissal, "Don't put yourself down like that. Come feel this silk, Sakura. It's the nicest fabric I've ever worked with in my life!" I did as she asked, nodding in agreement. It felt just as expensive as it looked.

Things went back to silence for a few moments before her eyes widened and she turned to me as though she'd forgotten to tell me something, "Oh! I want you to know that I've decided to put dibs on Sai."

My eyes shot up to her in shock as I remembered the odd blond woman exiting his room last night, but she continued, "He actually talks and listens to me, Saku, actually listens. Not only that, but I saw him shirtless this morning and well…you know, he's hot as hell. Is that okay with you? You don't like him, right?"

An uneasy laugh left my body as I sat gently down on the sofa, pulling the binder back into my lap, "Just be careful, that's all I'm saying." I can't outright warn her that he's a playboy because she'll think I'm trying to sabotage her or that I like him, so the best I can do is hope that since he hasn't hurt her yet that he won't do so in the future.

She scoffed as she turned her attention back to her work, hands moving expertly, "Puh-lease, if I can tame someone as wild-hearted as Kiba, I think I can handle a pampered prince."

My face warmed and I sat up straighter, "T-Tame? What do you mean? You didn't….with Kiba?!"

She winked at me before wagging a finger at me, "You're much too naïve to understand, little sister."

My face warmed and I glared at her. She was born only a few minutes before me, but calls herself my older sister all the time. I knew Ino went on dates with multiple boys throughout our teenage years and I've seen her kiss a couple of them, Kiba included, but the question of how far she'd gone with any of them still hangs in the air. A very large part of me doubts she's gone all the way with anyone. Surely she's saved herself for someone special.

Mikoto suddenly entered the room with a tea tray and sat it gently on the table. I wordlessly sat my etiquette binder to the side and expertly served tea. She gave me a gracious smile before looking up to inspect Ino's work so far, "Oh, it's looking lovely already, Dear! You have a wonderful gift!"

My sister responded with a humble bow before returning to her work with a small blush on her pale face, "Thank you, Ma'am. You flatter me."

Mikoto offered me a smile as she accepted a tea cup, placing her free hand on top of mine, "I can't help but feel like something is bothering you, Sakura. You've seemed quiet these past few days. Is there any way I can help?"

The girl leaving Sai's room flashed past my vision once more and I hung my head in defeat, "I-I'm sorry for being so obvious. I've been thinking about the princes' previous maid. What was she like, Ma'am?"

The queen gingerly sat her cup down with a small frown on her lips and I held back a sigh of relief as she believed the excuse I'd come up with on the fly. It wasn't a complete lie, though, because I really am curious about the girl. "Oh dear, what a tragic topic."

Ino's ears perked up and she stopped working to look over at us, accepting a cup of tea from me as the queen continued, "Her name was Mina Tanaka. Both Sai and Sasuke were head over heels in love with her."

Ino gave up on her work altogether, at least for a moment, and sat beside me on the sofa.

"She was an orphan that Madara came across whilst traveling outside of Konoha. She was only fourteen years old when she arrived."

Her face held a sad smile as she remembered the past, "Fugaku was furious that his brother had brought home a stray, but I was delighted. The moment I met the girl, I knew I'd love her like she was my own. She was absolutely beautiful and had a personality to match."

My brow furrowed. Madara had told me that the royal family had paid off Mina's family to keep them from spreading word that Itachi had murdered her. What's really the truth, then? Mikoto's gaze dazed off as though she were in a different time, "I would've been happy to see either of the boys marry her, "she suddenly snapped back to reality and looked between my sister and I with a sad smile, "She looked similar to both of you, actually. Ino, she had your blond hair and Sakura, she had your pretty green eyes. It's no wonder Sai is so smitten with you, Dear."

Ino's face blushed lightly in surprise that the queen was aware of her son's emotions and was laying them out in front of us. I wanted to run away when Ino, not knowing any better, curiously asked, "What happened to Mina?"

The Uchiha royal's smile faded and she looked truly sad, "She lived with us for nearly three years before she was tragically assaulted and murdered by an intruder."

Ino's already fair skin paled further and she raised a shocked hand to her lips, "Oh my gosh, that's terrible! I imagine the culprit was severely punished?"

Mikoto's eyes locked onto mine for a few moments, but it felt like longer, before she replied, "Unfortunately, the murderer hasn't been caught, to this day."

I shook my head and looked down into my teacup uncomfortably. That look was obviously a warning to not tell Ino what I knew. It seemed the queen wanted to keep Ino from being scared away for some reason, maybe because her son has taken such a liking to her. The usually delightful queen suddenly seemed not so nice, but she quickly rid her face of its unusual expression and lightly patted her cheeks, "That's enough on that tragic topic, my girls. May dear Mina rest in peace. We need to focus on this ball! Sakura, darling, what do you think about this color for table cloths?"

I leaned forward to inspect the small square of deep red cloth in her hands, offering a short nod, "That's lovely, Ma'am."

My mind was once again racing a mile a minute with questions. How does the queen know that I've been told the truth about Mina's death anyway? Had Madara admitted to her that he let it slip when he was warning me about Itachi? It seems like if one Uchiha witnessed something in the castle, all of them witnessed it, especially when it comes to Sai and Mikoto. Those two in particular have brought up topics they shouldn't have any way of knowing about.

By the time the evening came to a close, we'd finished all the planning for the ball and simply had to wait for all of the decoration, food, drink, and music orders to arrive. Mikoto called no less than twenty guards to come and once she'd given them their orders, they dispersed with the promise to have all that she wanted by morning.

The ball is only a day and a half away at this point and I was worried we'd never be ready in time, but who am I to assume things?

I followed Ino up the stairs at around eleven in the evening, and when I tried to follow her up the second flight to share her room with her, she stopped me with an unhappy frown, "What are you doing? Isn't your room on this floor?"

I haven't told her about me sharing a room with Sasuke and begged everyone else to keep it a secret until I was able to find a way to break it to her in a way that doesn't make her assume I've been sleeping with him. I made myself shrug nonchalantly, eager to convince her so I won't have to face Sasuke after what happened in the laundry room earlier, "I thought it'd be nice to share a room again, like when we were kids. How 'bout it?"

She snorted at me in disbelief, "No thank you! I'd like to enjoy this luxury alone. Besides, I want to be ready in case Sai comes to visit me or something. Everything will be ruined if you're there!" She has a point. I would actually pass away on the spot if I woke up to Sai wanting to do some very private things with his new love interest in the very bed I would be sleeping on.

With a sigh, I nodded in defeat, "Yeah, you're right. Good night, then." The blond gave me a half-hearted wave before turning and continuing to ascend the stairs to the third floor.

I watched in jealousy until she was out of sight, then turned to look at the closed door down the hall that leads to Sasuke's room. The little hairs on my arms stood up as I remembered how threatening he'd acted toward me earlier. I'm scared. I clasped my hands together in front of me to stop them from fidgeting as I walked slowly in that direction.

The prince hadn't admitted to a single thing when I accused him earlier, but he also didn't defend himself. What if I was correct and my accusations have sent him over the edge? Will he finally finish the job and kill me instead of playing with me further now that the fun of me not knowing the truth is gone? My bare feet felt cold against the floor and I finally stood before the closed door.