Author's note: Wow guys. I feel accomplished. I finished up TWO, yes, TWO whole stories tonight. That's a HUGE accomplishment for me, seeing as how it usually takes me weeks and weeks to get started on one. But eh, AP tests are over, this week is school is going to be pretty laid-back, so WHAT THE HEY, might as well make use of my free time and tie up some loose ends, like this story. So. Artheph and I came up with the idea like… WAY BACK THEN. Like seriously, months and months and months ago. Unfortunately, it fell on me to write it… and it kinda just... died. But look, it's done now. So do enjoy.
Crysthur
BY THE BY! I'd just like to say that we have an unhealthy obsession with little Sasuke. I, for one, would just die of sheer joy if my kid came out looking as adorable as little Sasuke is. I'd pay some good money to genetically engineer a child to look that way. In short, little Sasuke is just the embodiment of all that is adorable in this world. That is all.
Little Sasuke has a hidden talent that only he knows about, hence the word "hidden." Ever since he was a wee toddler, Sasuke had found that his voice had an unusually persuasive effect on people. This talent made Sasuke a force to be reckoned with. I mean, come on. He's already got that absolutely adorable cuddliness going on for him… put that together with his raspy little voice, and no one stands a chance. By the time he was six years old, Sasuke had realized the full potential of his raspy little voice... the possibilities were endless. He could make anyone do anything he wanted, just by dragging out a few syllables. And no one felt the wrath of his raspy little voice more than his family.
Sasuke's mom… who shall remain unnamed and just be known as Sasuke's mom, was in the kitchen one fine day, peeling potatoes with one of those really cool peeling apparatuses modern science has come up with. In the midst of her peeling, she felt a little tug on her dress. Looking down, she found her little Sasuke with that oh so innocent look on his face. She sighed. Ever since she saw him sitting in the living room with this conniving look on his face in the morning, she had been expecting him to pull something. And she had spent the rest of the day mentally preparing herself to refuse his request. Whatever it was. She was going to say no this time. And stick by it.
"Okaa-san…"
Sasuke's mom sighed inwardly. It was starting.
"Yes, Sasuke?"
"Huhn… I saw this kid at school today…"
"Uh-huh…"
"And… he had on these arm warmers…"
"Uh-huh…"
"And… they looked really cool…"
"Oh Sasuke… I'm sorry honey, but arm warmers are rather expensive. You can't ask us to buy you something just because you like the way they look…"
Sasuke looked defeated for a moment. But only for a moment. Sasuke's mom could have sworn she saw his eyes glint with this mischievous light, but it was quickly replaced by a sad, pleading look.
"But 'kaa-san…"
"No, Sasuke. Besides, it doesn't even get that cold around here anyways. They'd be useless."
" 'kaa-sannnn…"
Oh no. He was starting the dragging of the syllables. Sasuke's mom steeled herself. That raspy little voice of his was just so darn endearing. It was really hard to keep herself from melting into a pile of mush.
"Plus, they'd get dirty really easily… it would be impractical."
"But 'kaaaaa-sannnnnnnnn…"
Oh dear. Sasuke's mom felt her resolve waver. The way he had with his raspy little voice… It just seemed to echo in her head, and each time it echoed, it got louder and louder. She shook her head, trying to clear it out. Just when she had managed to re-assert herself, however..
"Please?"
He didn't even have to drag out the syllables that time.
Sasuke's dad… who shall ALSO remain unnamed and just be known as Sasuke's dad was particularly resistant to the charms of Sasuke's raspy little voice. Or, at least that's what Sasuke told himself, seeing as how he was scared witless of his dad and how no power in heaven or on earth would ever move him to even try using his raspy little voice on his dad, no matter how much he wanted to get out of his chores. On the other hand, however…
Sasuke's brother... who shall not remain unnamed because he has a name and all and shall be referred to by that name, Itachi, was by no means immune to the conniving ways of his little brother. Yeah, you'd think that Itachi, who ends up murdering everyone in the clan, would never fall for cheap tricks such as a raspy little voice, but this story is set in the pre-Itachi killing spree days, before Itachi went all psycho like whoa. See, back then, Itachi was a cool older brother. And sure, you could always argue that he was just pretending to be the cool older brother the entire time, but regardless of whether it was all just a big lie or not, he was an UBER COOL BIG BROTHER. Which is how he ended up on all fours with a bucket of soapy water and a toothbrush, scrubbing the kitchen floor on a Saturday afternoon while his little brother frolicked outside in the meadows.
So how did this all come to be? Let's back it up a bit:
It was Saturday morning. One of those Saturday mornings that you see in the movies, where the weather is just impeccable and the flowers are in full bloom and a rainbow suddenly shoots across the sky. Right, so not so much that last part. But the point is, the day was absolutely made for little six-year old boys to go out and play. Unfortunately for the little six-year old boy who our story is concerned with, this was not an option, at least not until he finished his chores. Sadly, little Sasuke did have chores, chores that his father insisted "built character." Sasuke really didn't see how scrubbing the kitchen floor every week with a toothbrush was going to build anything other than chronic back pain (Yes, even for a six-year old. You try doing it), but hey, Dad's word was law. So thus, every Saturday morning found Sasuke working hard on that kitchen floor, wasting away his precious youth.
This particular morning, Sasuke had just started in on all the crumbsies that had accumulated over the week when he heard his brother walking by outside. The wheels in Sasuke's mind started turning. What could only be described as an evil (yet somehow still adorable) grin spread over his face. He smudged some dirt on his face, just for good effect, before letting that voice of his work it's magic.
" 'Nii-sannnn,"
Outside, Itachi stiffened. He willed himself to just ignore it and walk away.
Ignore it and walk away. Ignore it and walk away.
Yet somehow, Itachi found himself turning around and entering the kitchen. There, he found a completely wretched looking Sasuke sitting on the kitchen floor, looking imploringly up at him. Itachi sighed inwardly. This was not going to be good.
"Yes, Sasuke?"
"Dad wants me to scrub the kitchen floor…"
"Yes, because that's what you do every week."
"I know, but…"
"And it's your chore, so it's your responsibility."
"But…"
"Plus, it helps you build character, remember?"
"Yes, I remember."
"Good. So be a good boy and finish this up. If you finish early enough, I'll help you with your shuriken practice."
"Okay…"
Immensely satisfied with himself, Itachi turned to walk away. He had just about reached the door when…
" 'Nii-sannnn."
Itachi had had it. That spoiled little brat was so going to get it. Turning back around, he was prepared to get evil-big-brother on the kid's ass when he caught sight of him. Sasuke was looking up at him with that ever-so-innocent look on his face. His face was smudged with dirt, and his lower lip was trembling in a precarious way. And then that voice…
" 'Nii-sannnnnnn…. pleaseeeee?"
And so it was that Itachi he ended up on all fours with a bucket of soapy water and a toothbrush, scrubbing away at the kitchen floor on a Saturday afternoon while Sasuke frolicked outside in the meadows. Oh yeah, Sasuke was going to go far in life. His raspy little voice was going to make sure of it.