A/N: Some things happened that made my creative muse suffer; it became a struggle to try and write without being plagued by doubt and fear. But after some effort it seems to be back! I'm aiming to post another chapter within a week :)

Our guest is quite talkative, in a curious way

"Have one," a soft voice spoke behind him.

Kakashi turned to see a basket of figs raised to his face. Three girls stood behind, smiling shyly, eyes flickering between him and Sakura expectantly.

"Thank you." He grabbed one as Sakura stepped up beside him, reaching for her own and nodding at the girls in approval.

The red insides were perfectly sweet and melted in his mouth. Kakashi had to suppress the urge to moan.

When he looked her way, he saw Sakura had already finished with hers, and was sucking at the remains of the fruit's cover with a fervor. He stifled a laugh and she narrowed her eyes at him, cheeks warm with embarrassment. His eyes crinkled.

Sakura huffed and looked away. She stubbornly continued sucking at the fig— its sweetness was a delicacy she would never tire of, and she would indulge in the fruit no matter what.

After throwing the cover away she slipped a finger, then another, into her mouth, sucking at the sticky sugar that remained.

At the sight of her tongue darting out between glossy lips, Kakashi broke out of his stupor and quickly glanced away, turning red himself.

'Let's make use of the time to prod some more, ' Kakashi told himself.

"You have such a delicious and bountiful harvest," he stated, "and I have seen mountains of fig already stored near the kitchens."

The girls turned to him and nodded.

"What do you do with all this excess fruit? Surely, you would not let it go to waste. Is it sold somewhere, traded for? Such perfect harvest would bring in boatloads of drachma— it's a divine meal fit to be sold to kings!"

The girls grinned. One spoke up. "Well, sometimes, we trade them in thanks."

"Trade them in thanks to whom?"

"The Trader. He comes by from time to time. Our Lady Circe lets him, because she likes some things in his cargo."

"Oh? I wonder what sort of magnificent cargo this trader carries, for it to catch your Lady's eye— it must be absolutely bewitching!" Kakashi exclaimed.

The girls giggled and nodded.

Sakura rolled her eyes and, thankfully, let him carry on with his investigation.

"The Trader brings our Lady Circe many things, and they are all bewitching! I remember one gold necklace— it was laced with jewels of every color in the rainbow!"

"I don't remember that one!" "Well I do, you were just not on the island yet."

Sakura cut in. "I've seen Lady Circe carry from The Trader delicate ointments, chests of jewelry and I assume spice, and beautiful, beautiful dresses. Mostly peplos garments. She has them designed and tailored to her tastes."

'Nothing very specific about that. Spice, what kind of spice? If only I could take a look, I'd have plenty of clues on their origins. But they're locked away in the enchantress's rooms…what about-'

"This merchant, what does he look like?"

Sakura raised her brows. 'Ah, that was too blunt. I'm letting my guard down speaking to them; they're just so merry and eager to please…'

"We don't know. We never see him."

"Ah. None of you?" He looked directly at Sakura. She shook her head.

'They won't happen to know how this trader mysteriously appears at their island, then. What a shame.'

Kakashi hummed. ' Well, I can't see the objects, but they have. If I ask about certain distinguishable material…'

'A woman who basks herself in perfection and extravagance. She must dress with the same air.'

He turned to Sakura. "These beautiful dresses...do they happen to be purple?"

Her eyes went wide.

"Yes. Every one of them."

He smiled, smirking internally. 'There we have it.'

Sakura watched him, unable to suppress her admiration and intrigue. "How did you guess their color?"

"Well, all across the sea and in lands even farther out, purple is a color of wealth, power— what your Lady Circe seems to embody. And purple dye is procured from a specific sea-faring people, who are known to be quite the merchants."

Sakura furrowed her brows. "Purple dye alone can tell you as much?"

"Yes. The color is a very rare one, Tyrian purple, and it is extracted from one source only: the Murex shells on the coasts of Phoenician waters. If the dresses are customly designed, their merchant would be in direct contact with their source, and have good relations with the textile handlers."

He pressed a finger to his lips. "Your trader, I bet, is a merchant who hails from the Phoenician port city of Tyre, center of trade, and home of the Murex shell. I've heard there's a whole hill of empty shells somewhere around there, near Sidon."

"A hill? Of shells? That's crazy!" A girl exclaimed.

Sakura was caught in memory. The name 'Tyre' had her think back to her time with her old mentor at her estuary, to her childhood home at the river's banks. She remembered one of the merchants who would often pass by her mentor— a large, boisterous man who claimed to travel far and wide. He would mention Tyre frequently in his tales.

Sakura spoke up. "I've heard of Tyre. Do they have cedarwood there?"

Kakashi gave her a smile. "They do. Their ports trade cedar."

Sakura grinned to herself. 'That sounds promising. If The Trader is Phoenician as Kakashi claims, that would be a perfect way to barter for the wood...if ever my dream should become reality.'

"You know a lot," Sakura praised.

"I know a lot because I sailed the seas. The most diverse people communicate across the waters, and so knowledge spreads wide and well."

"True."

Satisfied with the information gathered, Kakashi went back to harvesting the trees. Sakura joined his side.

Hours later, they finished with the last orchard, and made their way back to the palace.

After Kakashi's insistence, Sakura once again relented and allowed him to join in with the kitchen's cheese-making.

The entire time, Kakashi chatted with the girls and 'sneakily' added in questions, while Sakura watched on, exasperated, but indulging in his inquiries, and answering a few questions herself.

And the entire time, ever so discreetly, Kakashi observed her watching him, trying to gauge what exactly her intentions were, because her continuous assistance of his probing the girls for information was, frankly, confusing.

He had thought she was trying to fool him into believing she was on his side, ready to help him, and then take advantage of the deception when it came time to cut him down. He had planned to deceive her himself, on this assumption.

But if she was truly trying to trick him...why go to such an extent? He would understand lulling him into a false sense of camaraderie by granting him some of the knowledge he craved. But she was truly giving him useful information. And quite freely...he wasn't targeting her with his questions, and she participated anyway.

Yet when he had been trying to pry things out of her directly, she vehemently refused and redirected their conversation.

What was she gaining out of this? She was contradicting herself.

'She is either playing this so cleverly that I can't possibly understand her motives, or, she truly is acting as an ally of some sort.'

'The information she readily lets slip doesn't seem to be false...I've thought on our discussions, and if anything she spoke to me with an air of curiosity, not lies.'

'Come to think of it: when I pry for answers, she pries back, somehow. Yes, curiosity...she seems eager to figure me out. What I'm thinking, how I'm thinking. Doing some reconnaissance herself, I see.'

Kakashi looked at Sakura and smiled. She raised her brow at him, seafoam eyes narrowed.

'Taking advantage of me looking for answers, by looking for answers yourself? Clever. It would be difficult for your questions to be paid any notice of, this way. I'm distracted searching, and answer you in kind, like some sort of instinctual trade, a payback of information.'

Kakashi narrowed his eye back at her, cocking a brow, smile spreading further.

Sakura huffed at him and turned away. He watched her give directions to the girls.

'Now...is your information gathering a personal affair? Or is it for your Lady Circe, and ultimately, against me?'

Sakura peeked at him from over her shoulder, met his gaze, and held it. Then she slightly raised her chin in challenge.

'I can't tell. As of now, I truly can't say for certain.'

Dinner was yet again a grand and glamorous ordeal, the table streaked with dishes, delicious but excessive, and stocked with meats.

Kakashi took his share and thanked them for the spread, commenting once again on its unnecessary lavishness.

He was one man after all. Unless they were willing to join him on the table, as he recurrently requested.

But they looked too appalled at the mere mention of such a notion, and all but ran out of the huge hall once they had poured wine and passed all the meal's servings.

Kakashi sighed. "How odd."

Sakura chuckled. "I'd say you're the odd one, dear guest . Asking serving girls to sit and eat with you? Unheard of. If I were any other woman and didn't understand your request, I'd even call it scandalous."

"Ah yes, because inviting them to share this huge meal means I'm asking for an orgy, right?"

Sakura was grateful she had already swallowed down her wine, because she surely would have choked. She wasn't expecting that from him, so it was alright that some wine spilled and stained the white cloth—she was caught off-guard and understandably so.

She lifted her gaze to his. "I wouldn't even blame them for understanding it like that. How often has it been requested by our guests? I've lost count."

She rolled her eyes. "Don't act so surprised. What would you expect? When offered Paradise, ordinary men convince themselves they are divine kings. They are suddenly entitled to the whole world!" She giggled, and all of a sudden, for the first time in his stay on the island, Kakashi felt a sliver of fear creep up his spine.

Sakura stopped herself with a scoff. Then, she fixed him with a stern stare. "Meanwhile, you've been so well-behaved, it's kind of pathetic."

And then, as if she couldn't act any stranger, Kakashi watched her saunter up to him, trail a finger up his arm and then lift his chin, curling her other hand around his scarred cheek. He stared blankly up at her with his lone eye. Green eyes sparkled as she smiled softly, and spoke loudly, clearly and so sweetly, "Come. The air is cool and nice at this time, and perfect after your feast."

He let her guide him out of the hall.

The girls, who had been peeking into the hall and watching them the whole while, relaxed, pleased, and retired to bed after cleaning up the table.

The night sky was clear, not a single grey cloud blocking the moon and stars' silver light. Sakura had him sit on a pile of soft furs covering the marble floor, and then took a seat beside him, leaning back onto the column behind.

They lapsed into silence, the mood having shifted the moment they left the great hall with its wandering eyes.

Kakashi studied Sakura's profile, her expression indiscernible. Then he let his eye fall to her posture, how both her legs extended straight out in front of her, how her arms crossed and held each other at the elbows,how her long hair pooled across the fur around her, and how she stared out at the vast, shining skies.

He saw a careful sorrow in the way she held herself, like that.

He sighed and looked out to the skies himself.

Kakashi smelled the salty breeze, faint on this side of the palace, but there. The moonlight glistened across the dark sea, and illuminated the waters just enough that he could differentiate horizon from sky.

He lifted his eye to the stars. There, the Polaris shone bright. He recognized the Orion constellation, then the Eridanus, then—

Kakashi sat up abruptly, eye wide.

Was he drunk? Did he really have enough wine that the stars themselves began to swivel across the skies above him? No, he was sure...

He turned to Sakura.

'Did she poison me? Is this a plan to dull my senses? How did she manage to catch me off-guard, my nose would have—'

"Stop staring at me with such accusation. You won't be able to look to the stars for guidance; Lady Circe is the one who made it so."

He pushed back a frown. "And what does that mean?"

"If you try to focus on them, the stars will run away from you." She sighed.

His mouth fell slightly open. Then, he leaned back against his column.

"I see."

Sakura twisted pink strands through her fingers. "That way, it's impossible to guess the location of the island. Aeaea is forever lost amidst the vastness of the sea."

He pursed his lips.

"It's made it quite difficult for me to study any astronomy," she continued.

He chuckled. "I can imagine."

Kakashi hummed. "Still, you can manage to identify maybe two constellations before they disappear from sight."

She looked doubtful.

"Here, follow my finger. What constellation do you know?"

She thought for a moment. "Andromeda."

"Andromeda, Andromeda," his eyes scanned the stars swiftly.

"Stay focused on my finger...alright...there! Did you see it?"

Sakura was smiling. "I think I did."

She turned to him. "Strange, that we both saw it together before it disappeared. I always thought the illusion cast itself individually, on each of our minds differently."

"Well, it seems to be a collective bewitchment. That is rather strange, I'll say...as if the stars know we're watching them, and when we observe them a certain way, they realize, and change their existence." His eye twinkled playfully.

"The stars having a mind of their own? That's something to think about," Sakura responded, her smile spreading wider.

They continued for a while, catching glimpses of what constellations they could, until Sakura decided it was late enough to retire to bed.

Kakashi agreed, his planned early-morning adventure in mind.

A/N: Kakashi trying to look underneath the underneath, as usual.

Fun fact: I live in 'modern day' Phoenicia! A tiny Mediterranean country in the middle east. There actually is a whole hill of empty Murex shells near Sidon-crazy right? The dye needed crazy amounts of Murex to be produced, and it was sought out by many.