Written for day 2 of KakaSaku Week 2016. Prompt: Fairy Tail/Legend

Sakura shivered as a chill ran down her back. The forest was thick enough it was blocking out the sun, casting the woods into an early twilight. She pulled her thick red cloak closer around her body and continued down the footpath. On the other side of the forest was an inn she planned to stay the night at, if she could get there before morning that was.

Much to her annoyance, however, the path was winding needlessly though the trees instead of just heading due East. She was sure it was taking at least three times as long to get there than it would be if the path cut straight on through.

Not for the first time she considered making her own way through the trees and underbrush instead. She had been warned, repeatedly, by inhabitants of the village she had stayed in the night before not to wander off the path. They were not terribly consistent about the why though. One told her there was a curse on these woods and that those who wandered off the path were turned into mushrooms for the trolls to eat. Another told her that an evil witch lived in these woods and if she wandered from the protection a white witch once placed on the trail she would be enchanted, lured to the evil witch's home and skinned alive. Apparently, this witch wore human skin as a coat.

The most popular warning she received however was about the beast. Apparently, a vicious beast roamed these woods, sometimes as a wolf large enough to ride, sometimes as a man of unearthly beauty and sometimes a mixture of the two. They told her that if she looked carefully into the dark of the woods and saw a pair of mismatched eyes staring out at her, one silver and the other red, that she was in extreme danger. They claimed he had some sort of code of honor, that he only harassed travelers that left the path.

They were however vague about exactly what the wolf/man/beast thing would do to her if she wandered off the trail.

Now Sakura was a reasonable woman; she had seen her fair share of magical and unexplainable things. She was on her way to accept an apprenticeship to the most powerful medi-witch in recorded history after all.

She knew trolls didn't normally live this far north, so a spell to make her troll food was unlikely. Witches rarely wore human skin, that was generally reserved only for the most primal and barbaric practitioners. That didn't mean there wasn't a witch here that would wear her skin as a coat, but that too was probably not true.

The wolf creature? That was the one fueling her hesitation. That could be a thing, and this was the right part of the world for it too.

Soon the sun had completely fallen and she was forced to use a small, enchanted lantern to give enough light to see the path. A wolf howl cut through the stillness of the forest, causing her to stop and glance around. She didn't see anything nearby. Was that the beast? She wondered before brushing the thought away. It was night, in the forest, so truly it would be amiss not to hear a wolf or two.

So she set off again, though this time at a slightly faster pace. She had to be at least half way through her journey by now.

Another howl cut through the air, this time louder. Closer. This time, instead of stopping she sped up. Sakura was still skeptical about there being a wolfman in these woods, but at the very least there was wolf in the forest. And it was getting closer.

A third howl took her by surprise and she tripped, her foot catching in a root that was sticking out of the dirt. The lantern slipped out of her hand, cracking as it hit the ground and plunging everything into darkness.

Fighting to calm her breathing, Sakura stayed still as her eyes slowly adjusted. Once she could see enough to pick out the trees closest to her, and a bit of the path, she had calmed down enough to notice the sound of something moving about. Something large, stepping though the underbrush and between the trees. She turned to try and see what was out there and had to hold her hand over her mouth to stop her shriek.

There, outside of her limited night vision, she could clearly see two eyes. One silver. One blood red. Now that she knew where to look she could make out a vaguely canine form, standing about 10 feet away from her. She could hear the beast's breath, low and menacing. Her blood ran cold as the weight of her situation dawned on her.

She slowly starting moving, not wanting to spook the creature staring her down but as she tried to put weight on her right foot it gave out and she fell again.

A twig snapped and she whirled around to see the beast standing right behind her. Close enough that she could see the silver in its fur.

"Okay," she said softly, "good wolf. Please don't eat me."

The beast started making an odd noise and it took a moment for her to realize it was laughing at her.

Her eyes narrowed into a glare and, as if often did, annoyance took over her fear.

"Do you find this funny? I'm hurt in the middle of the woods and a giant wolf is looking at me like I am dinner and you think this is funny?"

Even as an apprentice initiate Sakura's magic ability was attuned enough to sense the sudden wash of power in the air. The wolf was close enough she could see his fur ripple and recede to reveal a man.

A naked man.

He stood, revealing himself to be tall, muscular, and, from the point of view she had, very endowed.

Her face flushed as she turned away, grateful for the darkness.

This time when the man laughed it was immediately recognizable as such, a deep throaty laugh.

"To answer your question," he said, his voice husky and rough, like it wasn't used often, "I do find this a bit funny, but more because you thought I was going to eat you for dinner than anything else."

Sakura turned and looked up at him, surprised by his words, to see him walking towards her. Without a stitch of clothing on him she could see, easily, the way the muscles of his legs moved with each step. She could feel her face flushing again and didn't care enough to try and hide her face.

"So you aren't going to eat me?"

He kneeled in front of her, his face now on level with her own. His mismatched eyes met her green ones and she felt an unexpected swell of arousal in her abdomen.

He grinned at her, sharp teeth flashing. "Not for dinner."

Gasping loudly in surprise, she jerked back as he reached towards her.

Laughing again, his smiled softened, "I'm joking. I just want to look at your ankle."

"Oh," she said, oddly disappointed as he carefully examined her ankle.

After a moment, he stopped prodding at her foot and looked back up at her. "I think you sprained it Red, you won't be doing much more walking tonight."

"My name isn't Red," she snapped, "it's Sakura and I am too going to be walking. I need to make it to Kisaragi Village tonight."

"Well, Sakura," he said, sounding ouch each syllable in a mocking tone, "I would love to see you try."

She glared at him before trying to stand again, but this time when her ankle gave out he caught her. She froze as he held her against his bare chest.

"What was that about making it to Kisaragi Village tonight?" She twisted to glare at him and he smiled, "how about this. I'll take you back to my place, we can take care of that ankle and you can go to Kisaragi in the morning."

Sakura thought over his words, still unsure if she could trust him but realizing she had no other options. She nodded, "okay."

The word was barely out of her mouth before he was in motion, standing up and swinging her onto his back. A small, surprised sound escaped her mouth as she grabbed his shoulders tightly. Not waiting for her to get used to her new position, her chest pressed flat against his bare back, he started off into the woods.

Where she would have had to move slowly, picking her way through the underbrush and over roots and fallen trees, he practically flew. He moved with the kind of fluid grace no human ever could achieve and she found herself becoming less scared and far more curious about the man.

Sakura tried to watch the woods go past, anything to distract her from the way the muscles in his shoulder were perfect, and the way they moved under her hands, or the almost too warm body heat coming off him. He felt like a hot water bottle, wrapped in a moleskin cover. Soft and supple to the touch and radiating the kind of heat that made her want to melt into him and never move again.

Unfortunately, it was far too dark for her to see anything clearly, especially with the speed he was making look easy. He wasn't even straining, like she weighed nothing, and Sakura was not a slight woman. She was slim, and shorter than him yes, but she made up for that with a well-toned and properly feminine figure.

His hand, the one holding her right leg just above the knee, flexed slightly; his fingers sliding against her skin where her dress had hitched up made her breath catch in her throat.

"Can you even see where you are going?" She asked, her words forced out in a rush for any kind of distraction.

"I can see better now than you can in daylight I'd wager."

"What are you?" she asked bluntly.

He made a tutting sound, "now, now Sakura-chan, that isn't very polite, is it?"

Any other time she might have been embarrassed for her bluntness, at least enough to feign an apology, but it was late, she was tired and she want to know just what sort of creature was hauling her home. He had promised not to eat her for dinner, he had made no promises about breakfast.

He laughed, almost as if he could hear how fast her mind was racing, "my name is Kakashi and since you seem so curious, I am a shape shifter."

Sakura gasped, loud enough that she did feel embarrassed by it. "But, I thought, I mean I had heard that-"

He cut her bumbling sentence off, "that we were extinct? Don't believe everything you hear."

Kakashi was quiet for a moment before speaking again, this time his voice softer, more thoughtful, "though that will be truth soon enough."

"What do you mean?"

He didn't answer, but she wasn't sure she needed him to. When she was young she had read every book in her small village, twice probably, and every bestiary agreed that shapeshifters had gone extinct a few years before her birth. They had been steadily declining for years but after the death of the last great known shapeshifter, a massive timber wolf said to stand taller than a horse's back called the "White Fang" none had been seen.

It was very likely she was clinging to the back of the last living shapeshifter, the end of his bloodline. And if his words, "that will be truth soon", were sincere it seemed he had no intention of passing on his abilities to any children.

Sakura knew next to nothing about him, but that thought made her sad. He was more than capable of being among people, could catch the eye of any woman he wanted, yet he stayed here in the woods? Letting the villagers use him a boogeyman tale to scare travelers passing though?

What a sad life that must be.

She had been so lost in her thoughts she almost didn't notice as the forest fell away and they entered a clearing. With the trees behind them, and the sky open above, Sakura could see clearly for the first time since her lantern had broken. Pale moonlight illuminated the grassy clearing, revealing a small cottage that had that rustic, hand built look to it. She would bet good money that he had done it himself, but no one was around to take that wager.

Kakashi walked briskly across the grass, going straight to the cottage's door. He bumped it open with his foot and warm light spilled out on them as he stepped through the doorway. Sakura turned her head from side to side, trying to take the whole room in all at once.

It seemed to be all one room, with a fireplace on one wall, the fire in it the sole source of warmth and light in the small space. A small table and single chair sat in a corner, a bed in the other. The last corner had a large wooden cabinet. Aside from a shelf with a few random books piled on it that was essentially it. Even for a hermit in the woods it was surprisingly Spartan.

While she inspected the interior of the cottage, he moved straight to bed, crouching down so she could release her hold on his shoulders and slide the few inches from his back to the soft mattress.

He crossed the room, grabbing the chair and moved it next to the bed.

"Put your foot up here," he said before moving to the corner with the cabinet and pulling it open.

Sakura lifted her foot as instructed and gingerly removed her boot and sock to examine it for herself. It was red, and slightly swollen. It was sprained but she was thankful it wasn't too bad. It should only set her journey back by a day or so, not enough to anger her future master hopefully.

If what she had heard of the famous medi-witch Tsunade was true, the woman was probably drunk in a gambling hall and might, hopefully, not even notice her being late.

Pale hands reached past her own, gently lifting her foot. She looked up sharply, green eyes meeting his mismatched ones, and watched him sit in the chair and rest her foot in his lap. Thankfully he had slipped into a pair of loose fitting pants or she was sure she would be blushing furiously.

"Your eyes," she said, leaning forward slightly to look at the red one carefully. It wasn't a normal eye, with an odd black swirl moving inside it, like it was orbiting his pupil. A scar bisected it, starting on his forehead and ending in the middle of his cheek. A single mar on an otherwise perfect face. "Do all shapeshifters have different eyes?"

He shook his head, breaking their eye contact, and turning his attention to her ankle. She watched him as he spread a cool herbal paste onto her injured joint, hoping he would answer but also feeling like she might be prying into something private.

She was about to ask what the herbs were, since to her surprise it was already starting to work reducing the pain she was feeling to more of a dull ache, when he spoke.

"No, the red eye," he looked at her and smiled, but was no joy in it and it almost broke her heart to see it, "it was a gift."

"Kakashi," she said, carefully, testing the feel on his name on her lips, "do you really live out here all by yourself?"

He laughed softly, the haunted look disappearing as quick as it came as he turned away to grab a roll of bandages off the floor next to his foot, "yes I do. You ask a lot of questions Sakura. Why do you care if I live alone?" He sounded genuinely amused as he started carefully wrapping her ankle.

"Maybe I am just naturally curious," she answered, "or maybe I'm just trying to weasel out all your secrets for my own gain."

His hand moved, quicker than she could follow, to grip her cloak where it was tied around her neck and pull her forward. He leaded forward as well, leaning only a few inches between their faces as he studied her intensely.

"And what would you hope to gain from these questions?"

"Knowledge is power," she answered honestly, "but that question was because I wondered if you were lonely. Out here all by yourself."

He grinned, flashing sharp canines, "lonely? Are you offering to keep me company?"

Sakura huffed, pulling back from him. His fingers, still tangled in the ties of her cloak pulled on it with her movement. The garment slipped, red hood falling from where it set on her head to reveal her bright pink hair.

To her surprise Kakashi suddenly started laughing. Not the almost mocking chuckles from before, or the odd wolfy laugh from the forest, but loud and honest laughter.

She had a feeling he was laughing at her expense, but watching the pure joy on his face she didn't mind.

Until he started to talk.

"Did you know," he said between peals of laughter, "that your hair is the most ridiculous shade of pink?"

"Hey! Who's being impolite now?" She demanded, narrowing her eyes into a glare.

"I'm sorry," he said, still laughing, before taking a few deeps breaths and obviously forcing himself to calm down, "but it is very pink Sakura-chan." He cocked his head to the side thoughtfully, repeating her name slowly, "Sakura. I get it now."

"Yeah, yeah," she said, waving her hand dismissively, "the color runs in my dad's family. Besides, I think it looks good on me."

The remaining humor on his face evaporated, replaced instead with a heated expression that made Sakura fight the urge to squirm.

"Oh it does," he said, quietly, "it does indeed."

Sakura could feel her cheeks burning, betraying how flustered his words made her feel. Though with the limited information she possessed about shifters, it was possible he could heart her heart pounding in her chest, or somehow sense the effect he was having on other, far more feminine, body parts.

He shifted her foot off his lap, it was already feeling better than before as she slowly lowered it to the floor and then he had closed the distance between then and any thoughts of her ankle were lost. One of his hands went to her hair, fingers threading though the soft strands, the other on the bed to keep himself from falling on her outright. His face was pressed into the side of her neck, breathing her in deeply and she held her breath, unsure how this had happened but also reluctant to stop him.

His lips, smooth but firm like silk over steel, pressed against her skin. Along the line of her pulse, up to her ear. His breath, far warmer than it should have been, fanned across her skin and she bit her lip to keep back the moan she wanted to make.

"Tell me to stop," he said, his voice low and husky, as his lips brushed against her ears with each word, "and I will."

Sakura knew she should probably tell him to stop, but she didn't want to. She couldn't quite explain it, but this felt good. It felt right. She had always felt that there was a grain in truth in ideas of fate and destiny, that sometimes the universe led you to exactly the place you were meant to be, right at the time you were supposed to be there.

She had felt that way the day she was accepted as Tsunade-sama's newest apprentice.

Like something divine was going out of its way to make sure this happened.

And that was how she felt now.

That or she was a young 20-something with ranging hormones. Either way when he nipped at her earlobe, drawing it into his mouth to sooth away the slight pain, she knew there was no way she would ask him to stop.

Her lips parted, releasing the soft moan she had stifled before, as she reached for him. One hand buried in his hair, the other slipping around his side to trace the muscles of his back.

Kakashi shifted, one knee on the bed to free his other hand to brush the side of her face. He pulled back, only far enough to meet her eyes, to confirm her assent before he descended on her. His mouth pressed against hers, his tongue darting out to lick her lower lip; teasing her into parting them and grant him access. Their lips moved together, his tongue invading her with a greedy need that took her by surprise. Her own tongue explored his mouth, moving gingerly over sharp teeth and tasting the very essence of him. A mixture of currants and a smoky richness she was sure was uniquely his.

Sakura sank into the kiss, leaning towards him, her hand on his back pulling him closer. She wanted, no needed, his body against her own. Memories of his heated skin when he carried her fueled her need to feel it again, this time against her own bare skin.

He pulled back, breaking the kiss to look down at her and shot her a cocky grin.

"You know, patience is a virtue."

Sakura scoffed, reaching up to untie her cloak. She was wearing far too much clothing for how warm her body felt, for what she wanted to do. The lone piece of clothing he was wearing, the pants riding very low on his hips was far too much.

Once the heavy fabric fell from her shoulders, fully revealing the sleeveless red dress she wore under it, she reached for him again. She pulled him down, pulled him on top of her as she lies back on the bed and while she knew he let her, it gave her a thrill of excitement to take the lead.

She pulled his mouth down to her's, eager to feel his lips against hers again and gasped into his mouth when his hands were suddenly on her. One slipped under her waist, pressing her hips up unto his, letting her feel the hardness of his erection against her core. The other pulled at her dress, sliding the fabric up her body. The hand on her back slid up with the fabric, lifting her so he could slide the dress up further. Their kiss only broke so the garment could be pulled over her head, discarded carelessly on the floor. A moment later her bra joined it.

He laid her back down, but stayed propped above her, admiring the beautiful woman in his bed.

"Yes," he said softly, "this suits you," before lowering himself on to her. Her hands were on his sides, holding him close as he pressed his face against her neck. He left a line of burning hot kisses along her skin, down the line of her throat, skimming across her collar bone to the mound of her breast. Sakura's eyes slid shut, soft moans escaping her like little breaths with each brush of his lips. As his lips closed around her nipple she gasped in surprise and pleasure, a hand sliding up his back to grip his hair. Holding him where she wanted him.

He teased the bud of her nipple, fully hard under his attentions, between his lips and teeth. She watched him, fascinated, as each pull of his lips sent waves of pleasure through her. He pulled away from her, nipple still sucked into his mouth until releasing it with a soft, wet, pop before moving to give her other side the same treatment.

Sakura pulled him closer, pressing him down so he was lying on her while he worked at her nipple, and reveled in the warmth of his body and the sensation of his mouth. She pressed her hips up, desperate for much a needed friction against her core.

Kakashi moved above her, never lifting his mouth from her breast, but shifting to lie on the bed next to her so he could reach her hips. He slid a hand under the edge of her panties and pulled them down tortuously slow and she would have whimpered if he had taken a moment longer than he did to relieve her of them. His hand traced its way back up her legs, brushing across her thighs before just barely, teasingly brushing against her.

"Ka-Kakashi," she gasped, lifting her hips to try and encourage him to touch her the way she needed him to.

He slid his lips off her nipple, resting his cheek against the softness of her breast and looked up at her. Their eyes met and she licked her lips, prepared to ask again he is was going to make her when his fingers finally touched her. She gasped, eyes closing briefly before she felt him tug lightly on her hair.

"Keep your eyes open," he said, an edge of command in his voice despite the breathiness of his words, "I want to watch you." He slid a finger inside her warmth to punctuate his sentence and she gasped but keep her eyes on him.

He held her gaze as he pumped his finger in and out of her body, bringing little moans and gasps from her throat with each movement. Her hips moved with him, pressing his finger as deep inside her as it could reach. Her breath hitched as he added another finger, and a third, slowly preparing, stretching her for what was to come.

She could feel her orgasm building and felt a moment of panic. She didn't want this to be over, not so soon. Not while he was still wearing his pants.

Something must have shown on her face because he laughed softly, before leaning in to kiss her just below the ear and then whispering, "come for me Sakura, it won't be the only time tonight."

He curled his fingers inside her, brushing over a particularly sensitive bundle of nerves and brushing his thumb over her clit.

Release came quick on the heels of his words, sending waves of tingly pleasure through her body. Sakura arched her back slightly and gasped as she rode it out. Her heart was pounding in her ears, her eyes closing as she tried to catch her breath.

She was so preoccupied with the aftershocks of her orgasm she did not notice Kakashi moving, didn't notice anything until his lips brushed against her ear, asking if she was ready for him. She took another deep breath and opened her eyes, not surprised to see him above her, their faces inches apart. She looked down, between their bodies, to see he had finally ditched his pants and the size of his erection filling the space between then.

She returned her gaze to his face, excitement anew filling her. If just his fingers had made her feel that good, she couldn't imagine how this was going to be. She answered him by reaching between then, running her fingers over his shaft softly and taking great pleasure in how that caused his breath to catch in his throat, before guiding him to her opening.

Kakashi pressed forward, sliding his erection into her with excruciating slowness. She tried to arc her hips, to force him in faster, but his hands on either side of her pressed her down into the bed to keep her still.

Sakura had never felt anything like this. She was not a virgin before tonight, but something about his touch, about the way he filled and stretched her, was different. Like it electrified her nerves, creating a level of please she wasn't aware existed.

When he was fully in her, filling every inch of her, he leaned his forehead against hers, eyes closed and taking one shaky breath after another. She cradled his face, reaching up to press her lips against his. He opened his eyes, and she nodded her head in answer to the question she knew he was going to ask.

He started to move over her, pulling almost all the way out before sliding back in, each time a little faster, a little more forceful than the time before. He moved his hands to near her head, to give himself leverage as he pumped in and out of her body. Sakura wrapped her arms around his back, nails digging into his flesh leaving light pink lines behind, and her legs around his hips, finally free to meet him with each trust.

She could feel her release, her second of the night, approaching as the pleasure and pressure built up in her body. She could tell he was close as well, by the way his breathing was coming in quick gasps and the erratic rhythm of his thrusts. She slid one of her hands into his hair, pulling him close to her to feel his warm skin against hers, and much as he had done earlier breathed words into his ear.

"Come for me Kakashi."

He shook his head slightly, breathing back, "I don't want this to be over."

"There's always tomorrow," she responded and he shuddered above her.

Two more shaky, hard thrusts and she came around him, squeezing him with her release as she gasped in his ear. He followed right after, biting out a curse as his body trembled above her.

They rode out their orgasms together, each taking large, gulps of air to catch their breaths. After a moment, he pulled himself carefully out of her, leaning on the bed next to her. She was worried he was going to get up, she wasn't ready for him to go, but instead he pulled a blanket up over their naked bodies and then let himself fall onto the bed beside her. Kakashi reached for her, as though he too was hesitant to part from her, and she let him draw her into the circle of his arms and rested her head on his chest.

As she listened to the sound of his heartbeat neither of them spoke, but this was one of those moment that didn't need words. They both understood perfectly what had happened tonight, and that nothing would ever be quite the same again.

Sakura knew there was no way she could leave the next morning. It was debatable if she could bring herself to leave the day after that even. Or the one after that. Hopefully Tsunade-sama would be drunk enough not to notice if she was very very late.