Hello my dears! It's update time! But first things first, I've updated my username for a number of reasons the main one being that it has significant personal meaning to me. Now on with the show. Hope you all are enjoying your holiday season and that love and happiness are abundant. If not, it's okay to be not okay. Sit back and take a moment to get your SasuHina fix and I'll be happy to entertain you for a bit. Hope you like it!

Chapter 3

There is something to be said about surprises. Sometimes they just come out of nowhere and, unexpected as they are, delight everyone involved. Other times, surprises can be considered out of place at first but ultimately, things work out even better than anyone intended. Hinata liked to think that her marriage, whirlwind as it had been, was a mixture of the two. She'd never dreamed she'd be Sasuke Uchiha's wife nevertheless here she was airing out rooms and doing her best to chase away some of the more foreboding ghosts of the past.

She didn't want to rid their home of the memories it held for her husband; rather, she aimed to breathe new life into them so he could once again have happiness in his home. She'd only heard him speak of his family once or twice before and what she'd gleaned from the information was, in the simplest terms, that he missed his mother.

Mikoto Uchiha had left some very, very big shoes to fill. Hinata Uchiha had chosen to walk her own path-in her own shoes-yet still paying homage to the late matriarch. She had been working in one of the guestrooms when Sasuke found her. She'd been caught up in her own thoughts and humming a song her mother had sung to her as a small girl.

The amount of dust one window can accumulate is just astonishing, she thought as she wet her cloth in the mixture of warm water and citrus oils. She had liked to create her own tinctures and whatnot from herbs and various plants in her mother's garden. She was want for more supplies to-

"I feel sorry for the soot sprites."

His tone had been one of playfulness, but being left to her own thoughts for so long, he made her jump right off the step ladder and directly and firmly on her hindquarters right in the middle of the room. She had every intention of being angry at him but the sound that came from him made her think twice.

The air around her twinkled and rang with the sound of his laughter. It radiated and permeated into every crack and cranny.

He was laughing at her.

She should have been supremely annoyed on so many levels. But she wasn't. As his laughter rang out, she realized at that moment that only a select few had the privilege of hearing it. She also realized that it was a sound she loved. His face was beautiful in his frivolity, especially when he allowed himself to let his guard down like this. Hinata was overcome by her own fit of laughter.

And so the pair sat there (well, Hinata sat there, Sasuke was now bent over in his laughing fit) and enjoyed a precious moment that they'd both treasure for years to come. When they, as a newly married pair, enjoyed the company of the other while letting defensive walls fall.

"Soot sprites?" she chuckled, "I didn't think the Uchiha compound was home to those."

He looked at her keenly.

"You know about soot sprites? I thought my mother made that up to get us to clean our rooms."

"Of course. It was often told to me by Haruhi, my nursemaid as a girl, for the very same reason. She would tell me that if I didn't keep my room nice and tidy, the soot sprites would take over and make all my pretty things covered in dust and soot."

"Hn," he said coming to sit next to her.

-:-

Sasuke sat next to his wife and wrapped an arm around her.

"Mother would say that the soot sprites would hide in our dirty socks and tickle our toes until we laughed ourselves to madness. I always believed her but Itachi, he mostly played along for my sake."

He sighed. The room they were in was his favorite room in the whole house. It had the original mahogany wood floors that age hadn't seemed to touch since the house proper had been built. The walls were a light blue, nearly gray, which soothed him in a way that he couldn't quite articulate. Since marrying Hinata, they had taken residence in his parent's bedroom. Before he'd returned home, he had worried before that it would be too painful or hold too many ghosts for him to spend his nights there. It was a wasted worry though. Hinata had begun her renovations in that room first. Where his parents' shadows hung everywhere before, only tiny memories-good ones-remained. She must have gone into the attic because he didn't remember having any framed photographs of his parents. Yet there they were, on the chest with white candles meant as a memorial to them. He'd not intended to make something so formal but it felt right. It was one more thing he adored about her. She had a way of quietly serving others all the while allowing herself to express any emotion she needed to. He loved her for it.

"As I was saying before, I feel bad for the soot sprites. It seems they've been forced back to the attic for now."

She blushed.

"It does seem that way doesn't it."

They both looked out the window. It shone with a new sparkle that hadn't been there for nearly two decades.

"My favorite part of this room is the stained glass on the top of the window. It's why I chose this one first. The window was practically begging me to bring it back to its former glory."

"Of course. It's why I loved this room as a child. Mother had the windows crafted for it when she was expecting Itachi and then when he outgrew it, this room became mine. I have very fond memories of her here."

"Oh! I didn't mean to-"

"You have nothing to apologize for," he said bringing his hand to stroke her cheek, "it's just as it should be. My remarkable wife has a talent for chasing away the ghosts."

He drew her face near to him.

"I'm happy yyyour happy dddear."

"Hn."

His lips met hers in an explosion of emotion. Let it be known that where Sasuke Uchiha had difficulty using words to express himself, his actions had no problem relaying how he felt. He felt her body relax into his hold.

Perfect.

Let it also be known that once Sasuke Uchiha had an inch, he stole the whole continent. He was a strategist in the field of battle and when dealing with matters of the heart. He took this opportunity to gently maneuver their positions to where he now loomed over her, his hands by her face. As he broke the kiss, he gloried in the blush that spread over countenance.

Does it spread all over? He thought, vaguely remembering the last time they'd been intimate. Well, I believe it's time to reacquaint myself with my wife.

And at last, he conquered what was once Hyuga and made it prominently known that she was now Uchiha.

And there you have it! Another chapter down and while I'm not sure how many this story will have, know that I plan to see it to fruition. I kinda just write until I'm satisfied with the chapter. Which makes me happy and hopefully, this story makes you happy. Let me know! Until next time lovelies.

~Haruchan~