Work Text:
The knock on the door made Kakashi jump, for no reason in particular. He was caught off guard, and maybe that’s why Itachi laughed at him for it. Kakashi sighed and stood up, gently tapping his husband on the head in a mocking reprimand.
Sakura was at the door, her nearly two-year old Sarada on her hip. She looked flustered and started speaking as soon as Kakashi opened the door.
“Hey, sensei! So sorry to spring this on you, but I really, really need someone to watch her. I’ve got a hospital shift, no way to weasel out of it.”
She was already shoving Sarada into his arms as she spoke, not giving him a chance to respond.
“I’ll pay you back, I promise, but this just came up so fast-”
“Sakura! Hey, I have wo-”
Sakura pushed a diaper bag into his arms as well, forcing him to juggle awkwardly to not hurt the child, who seemed to be only half-awake.
“All the info’s in there, thank you so much, honestly…” Sakura smiled, looking like she was ready to take off.
“Okay, he-”
“Okay!” Sakura was gone before Kakashi could even properly understand what had been said. He just stood there for a moment, his door open and Sarada starting to fuss slightly. Itachi came up behind him after a minute, looking unsure how to feel at the sight of the toddler.
“...what just happened?”
“Um…” Kakashi blinked and let the diaper bag drop to the ground. He shut the door and gently bounced Sarada, trying to get her to calm down. “I guess we’re babysitting… or, you are.”
Itachi sighed, then laughed. “I suppose I did say I wanted to spend some more time with her.”
The relationship between Itachi and Sasuke, his brother and Sarada’s father, had been nearly non-existent for the past few years, which had made it difficult for him to see his niece, even though she was about the same age as her cousin. Kakashi and Itachi went back to the kitchen. Sarada squirmed in his arms, trying to look around.
“Hi?” she asked, looking at the near-strangers she had awoken to find herself surrounded by.
Kakashi pulled down his mask to smile at her. “Hey, Sarada. It’s Uncle Kakashi.”
She stared up at him with wide eyes, then looked at Itachi, who had stopped for a moment to clean up the breakfast dishes and tend to his own toddler, Akira. Akira stood up in his chair and waved at her.
“This seems like it could get complicated,” Itachi said once he had finished putting up the dishes.
“Yeah.. I can’t skip work today, but I really don’t want to leave you alone with two toddlers…”
Itachi chuckled, stepping over to lift Sarada from his arms.
“Hey, sweetheart. Do you remember me?” he cooed gently at her.
She squirmed around, lip trembling. Kakashi had the bad feeling she was very unhappy about all of this.
“Mommy,” she said, her young voice surprisingly firm.
Itachi gently put her down. “No, mommy’s busy. I’m gonna look after you for a bit, okay?”
Before Sarada could answer, Akira hugged her, grinning brightly. He’d been in a very friendly phase recently, and Sarada’s surprised expression almost made Kakashi start laughing.
“Hi!” he said excitedly, still holding onto his cousin. Sarada started crying.
Kakashi let out a laugh, despite his better judgment. He quickly and gently pulled Akira away from her and up into his arms while Itachi started to comfort her.
“Dad. Sad?” Akira asked, pointing confusedly at Sarada.
“Yeah, she’s a bit sad right now,” Kakashi said, amusement still leaking into his tone.
“Why?”
“She misses her mommy.”
Akira looked at him, then at Sarada, then back at him. Kakashi had to say, the first real issue he had experienced raising Akira with Itachi was that the toddler didn’t fully grasp the concept of a ‘mommy’, having two dads himself.
“Oh. But, I wanna play.”
Kakashi bounced him up in his arms.
“Play with her?”
“Mhm!”
“Well…” Kakashi glanced down at Sarada, who was near full on wailing now, despite Itachi’s attempts. “How about you give her some time to calm down, and go make sure your toys are ready?”
Akira’s eyes widened excitedly and he nodded happily. “Down?”
“Yep.” Kakashi put him on the floor, watching him run off to his room before sitting down next to Itachi and Sarada. Sarada was just shouting now, tears all over her little face.
“Hey, it’s alright,” Itachi murmured softly, gently taking her hands. Kakashi held back, not wanting to overwhelm her.
“NO! NO, NO, NO! I want mommy!”
“I know,” Itachi said, still holding her hands and tracing his thumbs over her skin.
Sarada squeezed her eyes shut and dropped onto the floor, writhing out of his grip. Kakashi sat forward and cautiously picked her up to keep her tantrum away from the chairs and table for her own safety. She wailed, but didn’t fight him, at least.
Itachi put a hand on the back of her head and smoothed her hair. “Hey, Sarada, have you had breakfast?”
Kakashi sat her in his lap, looking down at the little girl as she calmed ever so slightly, still crying, but less intensely. “Yeah, have you eaten?”
She hiccuped, then shook her head between sobs.
Itachi continued to stroke her hair. “Are you hungry?”
She trembled, then scrubbed her tears away and nodded, her sobs quieting to soft sniffles. Kakashi passed her to Itachi so that he could go grab tissues. He heard him continue to quietly talk to her. Akira ran into the room, waving his favorite shark plush.
“Now?”
“No, not yet,” Kakashi said, ruffling his hair, “Be patient.”
He pouted, squeezing the toy to his chest.
Kakashi put the tissues on the table, next to Sarada as she slowly ate a bowl of cereal, eyes still red. There was peace for the moment, and at least that was a comfort.