{open} It was a beautiful morning.

[youngesthokage]

He was in a wonderful mood. He'd gotten in later than intended due to the rather long talk with his mother, which had been oddly easier with this one than the one from home ever was anymore, and by the time he'd made it home is good mood had returned and he'd settled right to bed.

Morning, on the other hand, had brought the flowers and he found himself looking out the window in curious fascination at them, mussed from sleep and somewhat bewildered.

Since when did snow bring flowers?

Comments

[youngesthokage]

"You share a great many mannerisms." His tone turned dry. "I think I disturbed her when I fed her seeing as we were at the tea shop we go to and I ordered like I was with you."

[bunsofsteel]

"Well, yeah, that would have freaked me out too, Itachi-sama~" She nuzzled her nose against his shoulder and glanced up. "I'll have to meet me, sometime. See how much of a difference you being Hokage made for me."

[youngesthokage]

"She has set about declaring everyone who doesn't consider me Hokage to not be 'real'." His tone was colored with humor. "And I pity the young Sasuke his privacy because she's declared that he's getting 'talked to'."

[bunsofsteel]

She laughed quietly, resting her cheek against his shoulder. "You explained it to her, then. Why everyone always thinks poorly of you, at first." Pressing a kiss to his clothed shoulder, she trails her fingers over his waist before moving to stand in front of him, wanting a look out the window. "Where did you leave her?"

[youngesthokage]

"With Mother and your teammates." It was a wry murmur. "I suspect if she hadn't been slightly frostbitten she would have run after me when I mentioned I was leaving."

[bunsofsteel]

"You're her Hokage-sama, right? I'd do the same thing." She rested her head back against his shoulder, reaching for his free arm to try to wrap it around her waist. "Is she staying there, then? With Neji and Lee and the others?"

[youngesthokage]

"She is. I've tasked her with getting intelligence around town and the like." He paused a moment. "And looking into what's needed to open a weapon shop."

[bunsofsteel]

"A weapon's shop?" She perked up at that, glancing behind her up at him. "I'd thought about that, actually. I spoke to some of the metalworkers in town, the guys who make jewelry? Most of their metal is imported from the two or three towns over; they own the mines. Once the snow clears, I was going to head that way. It's about... they said a week's journey, but I'm betting I could make it in a few days."

[youngesthokage]

"You should talk to her about it. I think she would be relieved. She looked rather overwhelmed and I had to dissuade her of the idea that she had to make the weapons herself and mine the ore herself and such."

[bunsofsteel]

"If you asked me to do it, I'd do it, you know." She smirked at him before leaning more of her weight against him, enjoying the contrast of the coolness before the window to his warmth behind her. "...But you said you dropped her off at Mikoto-san's, right? Did you... talk to her?"

[youngesthokage]

He quieted for a moment as he draped an arm around her. "It was... much less stressful to speak to your timeline's version of mother than it was to speak to my own."

[bunsofsteel]

"I like her. Mikoto-san." She closed her eyes and leaned into that arm with a small noise of contentment, then glanced up. "She told me what the necklace means, you know."

[youngesthokage]

He stilled for a beat. "I expected she would if you spoke to her."

[bunsofsteel]

She leaned up to brush her lips over his cheek, a soft, tender motion. "...Thank you for giving it to me."

[youngesthokage]

"It is merely a tangible declaration of that which is true." He leaned after the soft kiss, then looked to his tea.

[bunsofsteel]

She flushed lightly and stayed there against his shoulder, pressing one more kiss to his throat before resting back to look out the window again. "What did you guys talk about? You and Mikoto-san, I mean."

[youngesthokage]

"We talked about... a great deal. Differences between the timelines, views, commonalities... Many things."

[bunsofsteel]

"But everything's okay?" And by everything, she means everything. Whatever Itachi's previous relationship with his mother was, what his mother thought about her and him and Sasuke, about her younger self... everything.

[youngesthokage]

He paused a moment and looked at her. "Nothing is -wrong- if that's what you mean."

[bunsofsteel]

She sighed quietly and kissed his throat again with another small smile. "Good enough, Cryptic Hokage-sama."

[youngesthokage]

He huffed softly, then tilted his head to bare his throat to her. "Very well."

[bunsofsteel]

She kept her lips against his throat, nipping once before settling against him to glance out the window. "Have you ever seen flowers like this before?"

[youngesthokage]

"I haven't. Flowers that bloom in snow? Unheard of."

[bunsofsteel]

"I thought so." She nuzzled in against him, then started to pull away. "I want to go see them, let's go!"

[youngesthokage]

He made a noise of amusement and let her go, turning his attention to his cooled tea, drinking the rest. "Very well, allow me to dress."